RANCHI: Archer Deepika Kumari on Monday became the world number in individual women's recurve event, and her parents could not be more proud of what their daughter has been able to achieve.
Deepika completed her hattrick of gold medals at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in Paris on Sunday by winning the Recurve individual event 6-0. India's ace archer Deepika defeated Russia's Elena Osipova 6-0 in a thumping manner.
This is Deepika's second individual World Cup Gold medal of 2021 and the third gold of the day as she had earlier won gold in the women's team and mixed team event as well on Sunday.
Deepika was born and brought up in a lower-middle-class family in the Ratu area on the outskirts of Ranchi. Her father is an auto-rickshaw driver and her mother is a part of the nursing staff.
"I want to congratulate her, she has been working really hard. We are very happy with what she has been able to achieve. Atanu Das and Deepika won in the mixed recurve event as well so it is a very proud moment for us. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke about Deepika and it was a very proud moment for us. I am very happy that the Prime Minister sent his good wishes to Deepika for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, I hope Deepika is able to come back with a medal," Deepika's father Shiv Narain Mahto told ANI.
"It is not like we have forgotten the past, thinking about the hardships suffered, makes us realise how far we have come. One should not forget what one had to deal with in the past. I still have that auto and I still drive it, but I look at it from the point of view of work. I am very happy with where I am, my daughters tell me to not drive auto, but I like to do it, it is just my work. Arjun Munda (President of Archery Association) supported us throughout, we will be always thankful to him," he added.
Deepika's mother Geeta Devi said she is hopeful of her daughter and son-in-law Atanu Das coming back with a medal from the Tokyo Olympics.
"We want to thank God for being kind to us throughout. We just had Deepika earlier, but now we have Atanu Das as well. I hope that they both give good performance at the Tokyo Olympics, I am confident that they will come back with a medal. We have seen hard times, but Arjun Munda supported us a lot and we will be thankful to him," said Deepika's mother.
"We hope that Deepika and Atanu come back with a medal from the Tokyo Olympics," she added.
Earlier the husband-wife duo of Atanu Das and Deepika clinched their first World Cup gold medal as a pair after defeating the Dutch pair of Gabriela Schloesser and Sjef Van Den Berg 5-3 after being a set down.
At the start of the day, India women's recurve team comprising of Deepika Kumari, Komalika Bari, and Ankita Bhakat bagged a gold medal at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in the French capital on Sunday. The team defeated Mexico 5-1 in the finals.