Eyes on Paris Olympics, TOPS development archer Aditya Chaudhary all set for Khelo India University Games 2022
May 25, 2023
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 25 : TOPS Development archer Aditya Chaudhary, who will represent Lovely Professional University, is aiming for the Paris Olympics. He will showcase his skills at the Khelo India University Games 2022, which are being held for the first time in Uttar Pradesh.
Aditya, accompanied by Diksha Nayak, previously won a bronze medal in the Recurve Mixed Team event at the previous edition of KIUG held in Bangalore and is now prepared to change the colour of his medal.
Aditya, a resident of Abohar in Punjab, is a second-year student pursuing a B.A. He has also participated in the Khelo India Youth Games held in Pune and Panchkula. Aditya stated, "This will be my second University Games. Prior to this, I won a bronze medal in the mixed team event with Diksha Nayak in Bangalore. Apart from that, I have participated in the Youth Games in Pune and Panchkula, but I didn't win any medals there."
Aditya became a TOPS Development athlete in 2022 and resides in Abohar with his joint family. His father is a Deputy Director in the Education Board. At the age of 20, Aditya has gained good exposure at the national and international levels. He mentioned, "In 2022, I won a silver medal in the Junior National Championship. Prior to that, in the Junior National Championship held in Dehradun, I won a gold medal and a bronze medal. The gold medal was in the team event, and the bronze medal was in the individual event."
Regarding his international events, Aditya stated, "In the World Youth Championship held in Poland in 2021, I won a team gold. Similarly, in 2021, I participated in the World Championship held in the USA. I didn't win a medal there. After that, in 2022, I competed in the World Cup Stage 4, which took place in Colombia, but I couldn't secure a medal."
Aditya started participating in archery at the age of 9. Recalling those days, he said, "My father's friend, Bhupender Singh, whom I also call Bade Papa (elder father), used to do archery. My father wanted me to excel in sports, so I chose archery. I was 9 years old at that time, and I used to practice on the school ground in Davi Abohar."
Aditya believes that the Khelo India University Games provide new athletes with international exposure. He said, "Khelo India University Games is a very good platform. Just like a complete schedule is decided at an international venue, a SAI venue is created, competent judges are present--similarly, all this happens at the Khelo India University Games. We can say that it provides us with international-level exposure. This benefits new athletes so that they don't feel new when they go to the international level."
Aditya aims to participate in the Paris Olympics in 2024 and is preparing for it with great enthusiasm. He said, "My goal is to play in the Olympics. I will participate in the trials for the Paris Olympics. I am working hard for it. Our senior archer Abhishek Verma also resides at the Sonipat SAI Center. He provides a lot of support and guides us on how to perform in different situations. Apart from that, I follow the game of South Korean archer Lee Woo-seok, who won a gold medal in the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics and a gold medal in the mixed team event at the 2019 World Championships."
