India’s top ranked recurve archer Dhiraj Bommadevara created history by becoming the first Indian male recurve archer to win gold at the World Cup Final. He defeated Japan’s Nakanishi Junya in a closely fought shoot off at Saltillo, Mexico.

The 25 year old Army archer put together an impressive campaign, progressing through the quarterfinals and semifinals before facing world number 20 Nakanishi in the final. The contest ended level at 5 to 5, forcing a shoot off. Dhiraj held his nerve to win the decisive shoot off 10 to 9 and claim the gold medal.

With this achievement, Dhiraj also ended a 16 year wait for an Indian male recurve archer to win a medal at the prestigious World Cup Final. Jayanta Talukdar was the last Indian male recurve archer to achieve the feat, winning bronze at the Edinburgh edition in 2010.

Dhiraj’s historic victory also adds him to the select group of Indian archers who have won individual gold at the World Cup Final. Dola Banerjee remains the only other Indian to have secured World Cup Final gold, after winning the women’s individual title in the 2007 edition in Dubai.