Okazaki, October 3 (Daily Kiran) : Seventeen-year-old Kumkum Mohod has expressed that she has yet to fully grasp the significance of becoming the first Indian woman to win an individual recurve gold medal at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya. Her victory marks a remarkable achievement, as she also secured a gold in the women’s recurve team event and a silver in the mixed team event, completing a medal hat-trick.
In the final, Kumkum triumphed over South Korea‘s Yejin Oh in a shoot-off, which also earned India an individual quota for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. Reflecting on her historic win, she stated, “The emotion and feeling of winning the individual gold and securing the Olympic quota have not yet sunk in. It doesn’t feel like I’ve won yet.”
Kumkum’s success is underscored by her calm approach during the competition, where she eliminated some of the biggest names in women’s recurve archery. She emphasized that her focus was not on the significance of the moment or her opponents’ reputations but rather on maintaining her own process.
While discussing her strategy, she mentioned, “During the matches, I focused solely on myself. Even after winning the medal, I still don’t feel anything.” In the quarterfinals, she defeated the reigning Olympic and world champion, Kang Chaeyoung, and then overcame China’s Jingyi Zhu, the silver medalist from the 2025 World Championships, in the semifinals. In the final, after trailing 3-5 against Oh, she forced a shoot-off, scoring a perfect 10 while her opponent scored an 8.
When asked if her strategy changed with each round, Kumkum replied, “That was my strategy from the beginning. I concentrated on my key points, my process, and my breathing.” She added that her coach advised her to stay in her zone, ignore her opponent’s performance, and focus solely on herself.
This discipline was crucial in the final, especially as Oh was just one tie set away from the title. Kumkum responded by scoring a perfect 30 in the fifth set, leading to the shoot-off. Even then, she maintained her approach, stating, “I just told myself to stay confident and shoot.”
Kumkum credits her ability to repeat her technique under pressure to her routine, which includes concentration, meditation, visualization, and reading. “I do all these things besides archery,” she noted.
Despite finishing 10th in the ranking round, she did not set her sights on gold. Instead, she focused on one match at a time during the individual competition. “I didn’t think about it. When the individual competition started, I just prepared myself. I told myself to stay confident and see what happens. I didn’t think about the gold medal,” she explained.
Now, Kumkum is looking ahead to the next phase of her career. “I want to make some changes. But right now, I don’t have anything specific in mind. I want to work hard and see what happens,” she said.
Her gold medal at the Asian Games has also spotlighted her Olympic aspirations. While she has secured an individual quota for LA28 through her performance in Okazaki, she emphasizes that her focus will not be limited to just one future event. “I want to concentrate on the Olympics and other competitions. I want to give my best in every match,” she concluded.
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