Sheetal Devi equals compound world record of 704 at Asian Para Games
File photo: Unknown author Unknown author (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons
Sheetal Devi scored 704 of 720 in Nagoya on October 19, 2026, equalling the compound world record and putting India's women's team into the semi-finals.
What Happened
Indian para archer Sheetal Devi equalled the world record in women's compound archery on Monday, October 19, 2026, scoring 704 out of a possible 720 in the ranking round of the Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. The score also set a new Asian Para Games record, beating the 680 she shot at Hangzhou in 2023, and helped India top the women's compound team qualification, which earned the pair a direct place in the semi-finals.
Key Facts
- Sheetal Devi scored 704 of 720 in the women's compound ranking round on October 19, with 352 points in each half of the round.
- Her card held 32 Xs (the innermost ring, used to break ties) and 25 other 10s.
- The 704 matches the world record set by Turkiye's Oznur Girdi at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
- It is a new Asian Para Games record; her previous Games best was 680 at Hangzhou 2023.
- Teammate Payal Nag scored 675; together the two made 1,379, the top women's compound team total, giving India a direct semi-final berth.
- In the mixed team, Toman Kumar's 698 and Sheetal's 704 added up to 1,402, ahead of the earlier mark of 1,400 that Sheetal had set with Rakesh Kumar, according to reports from the venue.
- Swati Chaudhari set an Asian Para Games record of 648 in the women's W1 ranking round.
Why It Matters
A ranking round decides the seeding for the knockout matches that follow. Each archer shoots 72 arrows, in two halves of 36, and the scores are added up. A high total gives an archer an easier draw and, in team events, can carry a side straight into the later rounds. Matching the world record in this round puts Sheetal Devi at the top of the seedings in Nagoya and makes her and India the team to beat in women's compound.
For young readers, the story is also about what a sports career can look like. Sheetal Devi, an armless archer, made her breakthrough at the Hangzhou Games in 2023 with a double-gold performance. She arrived in Japan as the reigning world champion and the newly named World Archery Para Athlete of the Year. Her partner Payal Nag, described by World Archery as the world's first limbless archer, beat Sheetal in the individual final at the Bangkok leg of the series earlier this year, 139-136. Two young Indian archers pushing each other at the top of the world rankings is a sign of how deep India's para-archery pool has become.
The records are not medals yet. Ranking-round scores set the draw; the medals are decided in head-to-head matches, where a single poor arrow can end a run. Still, a 704 shows that Sheetal's form is at its peak for the main matches of the Games.
| Event | Score | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Sheetal Devi, women's compound | 704/720 | Equals world record; new Games record |
| Payal Nag, women's compound | 675/720 | Team total 1,379, first in qualification |
| Sheetal Devi and Toman Kumar, mixed team | 1,402 | Ahead of the 1,400 mark set by Sheetal and Rakesh Kumar |
| Swati Chaudhari, women's W1 | 648 | New Asian Para Games record |
Impact
Short-term: India's women's compound team goes straight to the semi-finals, and Sheetal Devi starts the individual knockout rounds as top seed. India's archers now chase medals in individual, team and mixed events over the coming days.
Long-term: Strong results at a continental Games help para archers secure funding, coaching support and places in national programmes ahead of the next Paralympic cycle. They also raise the profile of para sport for young athletes with disabilities who are deciding whether a sporting career is possible.
Who is affected: Sheetal Devi, Payal Nag, Toman Kumar, Swati Chaudhari and the rest of India's para-archery squad; their rivals from other Asian countries, who now face higher seeds; and young para athletes across India who follow them.
What should a young athlete take from this? Sheetal Devi and Payal Nag both rose from national competitions such as the Khelo India Para Games, where Sheetal beat Payal in the 2025 archery final, to the top of world para archery. Young archers who want to follow this path can watch for trials and camps announced by their state archery association and the Sports Authority of India.
Key Takeaway
Sheetal Devi's 704 on October 19 equals the world record and makes her, and India's women's compound team, the top seeds as the Asian Para Games archery knockouts begin in Nagoya.
Questions and Answers
What score did Sheetal Devi shoot at the 2026 Asian Para Games?
She scored 704 out of 720 in the women's compound ranking round on October 19, 2026, in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. That equals the world record and is a new Asian Para Games record.
Whose world record did Sheetal Devi equal?
She matched the 704 set by Turkiye's Oznur Girdi at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
Has Sheetal Devi won a medal in Nagoya yet?
Not from this round. The ranking round only sets the seeding; medals are decided in the knockout matches that follow. India's women's compound team, Sheetal Devi and Payal Nag, went straight to the semi-finals after finishing first in qualification.
Who else from India set a record in the archery ranking rounds?
Swati Chaudhari set an Asian Para Games record of 648 in the women's W1 ranking round, and the mixed compound pair of Sheetal Devi and Toman Kumar totalled 1,402.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
Sourced and fact-checked by the Peepals Global Editorial Team
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