Grandmother’s gift, a second-hand bow and three Asian Games medals: How 17-year-old Kumkum Mohod made history | Asian Games 2026 News

From a Rs 3,000 wooden bow to Asian Games history, Kumkum Mohod’s rise has been built on sacrifice, discipline and an unwavering belief in her ability. At just 17, the Amravati archer has emerged as one of the brightest young stars in Indian archery after winning two gold medals and a silver at the 2026 Asian Games.Kumkum’s golden run in Aichi-Nagoya began with the women’s recurve team event, where she teamed up with Ankita Bhakat and Kirti Sharma to defeat South Korea 5-2 and help India win its first-ever Asian Games gold in the event. She then combined with Dhiraj Bommadevara to claim silver in the mixed recurve team event. On Saturday, she completed a remarkable campaign by defeating South Korea’s Oh Yejin 6-5 in the individual recurve final, winning the shoot-off 10-8. The victory made Kumkum the first Indian woman to win an individual recurve medal at the Asian Games, and that medal was gold.The individual title also secured one of the quota places for India at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The quota belongs to the country rather than the individual athlete, but for Kumkum, it represents another major milestone barely months after breaking into the senior international circuit.

The Rs 3,000 bow that started it all

Kumkum’s story began in Amravati, Maharashtra, in 2018. Her mother, Rupali, noticed a relative’s daughter practising archery at coach Prafull Dange’s academy and encouraged Kumkum, then a schoolgirl, to give the sport a try.Her first bow was a basic wooden one bought with Rs 3,000 given by her grandmother. Within six months of taking up the sport, Kumkum had won a silver medal at the sub-junior nationals, an early sign that she could go a long way in the sport.Her family, however, had limited financial resources. Her father, Anil Manohar Mohod, made cardboard boxes for sweet shops and bakeries in Amravati. As the family struggled with the costs of training and travelling for competitions, he often took Kumkum to events on his motorcycle rather than pay for transport.Even after she reached the international stage, Kumkum continued to compete with relatively modest equipment. The bow she used to help India win women’s recurve team gold at the Archery World Cup in Shanghai earlier this year was second-hand and had already been used by her for five years.

Coach saw the potential early

Kumkum’s coach Prafull Dange has been with her for around eight years and has repeatedly highlighted her discipline and willingness to learn. Dange said he was impressed by her stubbornness to improve, along with her upper-body strength and shoulder position. During the Covid-19 pandemic, when normal training was disrupted, the pair worked extensively on short-distance shooting. According to Dange, those drills helped Kumkum strengthen her back muscles and improve her drawing technique.

2026: The breakthrough year

The 2026 season changed Kumkum’s profile completely. She helped India win women’s recurve team gold at the Archery World Cup Stage 2 in Shanghai, marking India’s first women’s team gold in the event since 2021. She later added another World Cup gold in mixed recurve with Dhiraj Bommadevara in Antalya.Those performances earned her a place in India’s Asian Games squad. She arrived in Aichi-Nagoya as the youngest member of India’s recurve squad but quickly showed that age was no barrier.She won her first two individual matches 6-0 before progressing through the knockout stages. In the quarterfinal, she defeated reigning world champion Kang Chaeyoung 6-4. She then beat China’s Jingyi Zhu 6-2 in the semifinal to book her place in the final and secure the Olympic quota place for India.At 17, she has already become a World Cup gold medallist, an Asian Games champion and an Olympic quota-earner.