Shattering the glass ceiling

The nation was captivated by videos from the Hangzhou Asian Para Games showcasing the young girl effortlessly lifting the compound bow with her feet, using her mouth to hold the arrow’s bit, and consistently hitting the centre of the target board.

Proud moment: Sheetal Devi received the coveted Sportswoman of the Year (Parasports) and Moment of the Year honours at the sixth Sportstar Aces Awards in Mumbai. | Photo Credit: K. R. Deepak

The Sheetal Devi story is one of two journeys, two people, and two destinies. On one side, there is a little girl born with phocomelia, a rare congenital condition due to which one’s limbs are underdeveloped or absent, thereby limiting, to a great extent, the ‘normalcy’ her life would allow. On the other, there is a steely-eyed archer who uses her feet to wield the bow and arrow, hitting the bullseye time and time again.

In 2023, Sheetal became the world record holder in the women’s doubles event at the Para Worlds, while at the World Archery Para Championships, she clinched a silver medal, making her the first female armless archer to do so. She ended the year with a world no. 1 ranking in the women’s open category.

The para archer from Loidhar, a small village in the Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir, got the country to sit up and take notice when her exploits at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games saw her win three medals (two golds and a silver).

The nation was captivated by videos from the tournament showcasing the young girl effortlessly lifting the compound bow with her feet, using her mouth to hold the arrow’s bit, and consistently hitting the centre of the target board. This incredible feat helped her win the coveted Sportstar of the Year (Female) and Moment of the Year honours at the Sportstar Aces Awards.

On stage, with her coach Abhilasha Chaudhary and companion Romica by her side, Sheetal’s acceptance speech belied her innocence. Like how a child would narrate a story during the school assembly, Sheetal went about telling her story, an exercise she has done countless times over the last five months.

“When I first saw archery, I never thought I could do it. Kuldeep sir (Kuldeep Kumar Vedwan, the army coach who spotted her) made a device for me with which I could shoot an arrow,” the 17-year-old said.

India’s Sheetal Devi (L) during the archery event at the 4th Asian Para Games, in Hangzhou, China. Devi won two gold medals and a silver medal in the tournament. | Photo Credit: PTI

Supported by the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (which also backs Paralympian Rakesh Kumar), Sheetal’s journey in the sport began when she was spotted by officials belonging to the Indian Army’s Rashtriya Rifles unit, who first chipped in with medical support and worked on and with her in sports.

To get better at the sport, her coaches considered the use of prosthetics, but her physical challenge didn’t allow her to do so with proper use of the arm, and hence, a girl who had learned to live with her legs doubled up as her hands learned to be an archer the same way.

“Sheetal is more able than others because her leg strength is so good; she is now the only woman in the world who shoots with her legs,” Abhilasha said.

“I used to love going to school and would go with my brother. I began using my feet to write. I do everything in my life with my feet. I didn’t know about the possibilities of sports. As kids, we would make wooden bows and play with them, but I never knew this would become a way of life for me. I consider my legs my hands. That’s how I’ve always used them,” Sheetal said.

Sheetal found her way to the Shrine Board and its coaches, Vedwan and Abhilasha, in 2022, and there was no looking back. The coaches had never worked with an armless archer before, and the pair drew immense inspiration from the story of Paralympic silver medallist Matt Stutzman, also an archer who shoots with his leg.

Customising equipment and pure hard work have brought Sheetal a long way, with the talent now a medal hopeful for India at the Paris Paralympics later this year.

“The best moment for me was when I won the individual gold at the Para Asian Games; the tricolour was flying high. My dream is to win the gold in Paris, too,” she added.