What began as a simple piece of advice from her coach has today become the guiding mantra of one of the most remarkable stories in world sport. For Sheetal Devi, the young archer who was born without arms, those words perfectly capture a journey defined by quiet determination, relentless hard work, and the courage to dream beyond limitations.
At just 18, Sheetal has already rewritten what many believed was possible — not only in Indian archery but in sport itself.
Using a technique that has left spectators around the world in awe, Sheetal draws and releases the bow with her legs and shoulders. The sight of her anchoring the bow with precision and sending arrows soaring towards the target is both extraordinary and deeply inspiring. Her rise has been nothing short of phenomenal.
Sheetal etched her name in history by becoming the first woman without arms to win a para world title, clinching gold in the compound women’s event at the World Archery Para Championships in Gwangju, Korea. In a memorable final, she defeated Paralympic champion Oznur Cure Girdi of Türkiye — an archer she once looked up to as an idol.
Her campaign in Korea was equally impressive beyond the individual gold. She added a silver medal in the women’s team event and a bronze in the mixed team competition, underlining her consistency on the global stage. Yet this was merely another chapter in a story that had already captured the imagination of the sporting world.
In 2024, Sheetal made headlines at the Paris Paralympics when she won a bronze medal in the compound mixed team event alongside Rakesh Kumar. The achievement made her India’s youngest Paralympic medallist at just 17, and only the second archer without arms ever to reach the Paralympic podium, following American legend Matt Stutzman.
Her meteoric rise had begun even earlier. In 2023, her debut season, Sheetal stunned the archery world by winning two gold medals at the Asian Para Games, along with a silver at the World Para Archery Championships. By the end of the year, she had climbed to the World No. 1 ranking in women’s compound para archery.
Despite an already glittering résumé, Sheetal’s ambitions extend far beyond para sport. Inspired by athletes who have crossed boundaries between para and able-bodied competitions, she dreams of competing — and eventually winning — in mainstream international archery events.
She first voiced this ambition publicly during the 100th episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati, where she appeared alongside Bollywood star Vidya Balan. Earlier this year, that dream moved closer to reality.
Competing against more than 60 able-bodied archers at the national selection trials in Sonipat, Haryana, Sheetal finished third in the women’s compound rankings to earn a place in India’s squad for the Asia Cup Stage 3 World Ranking Tournament in Jeddah.
“Yes, I did say that I wanted to compete with able-bodied archers — it was my dream. And I’ve made it,” Sheetal said after the trials, her voice carrying both pride and disbelief.
Her coach, Gaurav Sharma, who has been working closely with her since the Paris Paralympics, described the achievement as extraordinary. “She’s always focused and composed. Even I was stunned when the final list came out. It’s unreal to see a para-athlete competing shoulder to shoulder with the country’s best able-bodied archers,” he said.
However, sport rarely follows a smooth path. The Asia Cup was cancelled last year, delaying Sheetal’s much-awaited able-bodied international debut. Earlier in the year, she had also faced a major challenge when a rule change by World Archery forced her to completely reinvent her technique.
The adjustment was not easy. “I went through a rough phase. I missed practice sessions, lost matches, and people started saying I was a one-time wonder,” Sheetal admitted. “But the new rules forced me to go back to the basics.”
Relocating to Patiala to train under Sharma, she rebuilt her technique almost from scratch — a task that demanded patience, resilience, and immense mental strength.
For Sheetal Devi, though, setbacks are merely pauses — never full stops. Her ultimate goal remains clear: not just to compete with able-bodied archers, but to win a medal among them. The opportunity may have been delayed for now, but her focus remains unwavering. Because for Sheetal Devi, the answer will always come the same way — through the quiet flight of an arrow aimed straight at history.
