BHOPAL: Sohit Kumar is just 11, but he already has a national archery record to his name. Competing against athletes older than him, the Jabalpur boy shot an exceptional 710 out of 720 points at the Under-15 National Archery Championship in Guntur on Wednesday to clinch gold and etch his name into the history books.
Back home in Jabalpur, his father — who uses crutches and sells vegetables from a pushcart — was overcome with joy. “No one in the family was ever a sportsman. This is God’s blessing and my boy’s hard work,” he said.
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Sohit, a compound archer, is jubilant and already has his sights set on the 2028 LA Olympics, where the ‘compound’ category will be introduced. “Soon, there will be trials for the International Youth Championship, and I want to perform well and represent the country,” he told TOI.
A Class 7 student, he trains at the MP Archery Academy in Jabalpur. At just 10, Sohit even competed for Madhya Pradesh in the Senior National Championship in Jamshedpur last year. Though he couldn’t win a medal, the keen-eyed boy among men was quickly noticed.
He went on to win gold, silver, and bronze medals at the SGFI School National Games in Gujarat in 2024, and a gold at the Open National Archery Tournament in Uttarakhand the same year.
Sohit’s family, originally from Aligarh, moved to Jabalpur 15 years ago. His father was earlier a farm worker for Rinku Chaudhary, an army physiotherapist. When Rinku relocated, the family moved too.
After losing a leg in a road accident 15 years ago, Sohit’s father continued to provide for the family, selling vegetables on a pushcart while on crutches. Sohit has inherited the same grit and resilience.
Rinku spotted Sohit’s potential early and introduced him to coach Ricchpal Singh at the archery academy. Although the academy typically accepts students aged 12–16, Ricchpal was so struck by Sohit’s raw talent that he made an exception.
“I felt if he wasn’t given a chance now, his talent would go to waste. That’s why I gave him admission — and he proved himself,” said Ricchpal. “Scoring 710 out of 720 in the 40-metre event has never been achieved in this age category,” he added
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