CHENNAI: When recurve archer Kumkum Anil Mohod returned to Amravati — her hometown in Maharashtra — all she could see was banners celebrating her. After reaching the airport at 11 at night, she was given a roaring welcome by townsfolk, government officials and most importantly her family.
The teenager returned home as a double gold medallist from the 2026 Asian Games recently. She not only won two gold, but broke the South Korean hegemony in recurve archery. She defeated Oh Yejin, a junior world champion from 2023 and secured an Olympic quota for the country in the individual event. Besides, she was also part of the women's team that beat Korea to clinch gold and earn an Olympic quota for the country
She spoke on how much her achievement will help Indians going forward. “This medal is important because the country has not won an individual medal before this year. And beating Korea was also important because whatever everyone had made out about the country's dominance had to be erased for once. And moving forward, whatever tournament happens now, I feel that India's performance will get only better because of this medal. Indian archers will enter the field more confidently,” she said in a virtual interaction facilitated by Sports Authority of India on Friday.
Only in her first year as a senior international archer, Kumkum has already achieved a feat no other women recurve archers from the country could. But that comes on the back of big sacrifices. She opened up on how she spent most of the days with just bow her grandmother gifted her, despite objections from her father. “My father initially told me to focus on my academics because archery was an expensive sport. But my grandmother gifted me my first Indian bow which cost Rs 3000,” she said. It all began in 2018 when her mother saw students pursuing archery and then persuaded her daughter to take up the sport. Then, after a brief hiccup, she showed her potential and changed her father's opinion. That way, her father got her a second-hand recurve bow out of his savings from his sweet-box making business. “Their (family) support has been a lot, because in tough times some parents (may) tell children to leave the sport. But my parents never said anything like that to me, they have always kept me motivated. My father Anil Mohod still tells me, ‘Kumkum you will be the one who will bring the medal from the LA Olympics. Their motivation becomes very useful for me,” she said.
But life is not all about just bows, arrows and hitting 10s. “I am very fond of listening to songs. I still listen to them whenever I have time. But I spend most of my time reading books. With movies, I watch them only when there is free time,” she added.
But the teenager is not satisfied with just two gold medals in the Asian Games. “I need to work on technical things and go to the gym everyday. With strength, if we don't practice for two or three days, our hand starts shaking, and it goes a bit out of our control. So for that, we have to work on it daily,” she explained.
While she is still trying to process the limelight after her exploits in Japan, her focus remains clear — to win a medal at the Olympics. And she is willing to let go whatever she had before the Asian Games. "My childhood was all about archery, but at least it has secured my future. I did miss playing with my childhood friends and enjoying time with them," she signed off.