Indian archers end medal-less campaign

The men’s compound team lost to Germany in the bronze medal playoff, in the fourth stage of the Archery World Cup.

Abhishek Verma (in picture), Aman Saini and Amanjeet Singh lost to Germany to end India's hopes. Photo: AP

Indian archers ended their campaign at the World Cup Stage Four without a medal as the men’s compound team went down to lower-ranked Germany to lose out on a third-place finish here on Saturday.

The third seeded Indian team comprising Abhishek Verma, Aman Saini and Amanjeet Singh lost 225-227 to Germany, seeded fifth, in a bronze medal playoff match. This was the last stage of the Archery World Cup and the Indian team returned empty handed.

India’s World Cup campaign has produced one team gold (Shanghai Stage 1) and one mixed team bronze (Antalya Stage 2) - all in the compound sections. The recurve archers have failed to win a single medal. The Indian men’s compound team carried sole medal hopes on Saturday after all other Indians failed to progress beyond quarterfinals.

Both India and Germany were locked at the score of 57 after the first end but the Germans produced a stunning second end to take a 115-111 lead. The team of Henrik Hornung, Marcel Trachsel and Marcus Laube shot four perfect 10s out of a possible six, including three X (closest to the centre).

India shot a 58 in the third end but it was not enough to curtail the deficit and Germany still enjoyed a three-point lead. It eventually sealed the issue in the fourth end.