Chikitha Taniparthi wins two Asian Games gold medals after family’s sacrifices
Indian compound archer Chikitha Taniparthi won women’s team and mixed team gold at her first Asian Games after a difficult rise from a Telangana village. Her father financed equipment and training by taking loans and selling the family’s rice harvester before she joined the SAI Centre in Sonepat.
Chikitha Taniparthi’s first Asian Games ended with two gold medals after years of training financed through major sacrifices by her family in Sultanpur village, Telangana. Chikitha began archery during a Dussehra holiday after her uncle bought a recurve bow. She had previously trained in karate from Class 6 to Class 8 and earned a black belt, but her father, Srinvasa Rao, encouraged her to pursue sport.
When the family realised that competitive archery required substantial investment, Rao took a loan to buy equipment and later sold the family’s rice harvester to fund training. He also travelled with Chikitha to a nearby town, where she trained with a local archer. The family lost ₹1.5 lakh in a fraud while attempting to buy her first compound bow and borrowed another ₹3.5 lakh for new equipment.
A government-funded bow from the district Collector helped her continue. After travelling to Delhi and training with compound archer Abhishek Verma, she was selected for the Sports Authority of India Centre in Sonepat. SAI coach Vivek Kumar said Chikitha shot about 300 arrows a day in two sessions and regularly arrived early for training.
She later became world youth champion and won World Cup team silver in 2025 and again this year. After struggling with her aim following the world title, Chikitha regained confidence through Asia Cup medals and returned to India’s first team. At the Asian Games in Nagoya, she won women’s compound team gold with Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Prithika Pradeep.
She then partnered Sahil Jadhav to win mixed team gold after India prevailed over Korea in a shoot-off. Chikitha said meditation, breathing exercises and trust in her preparation helped her manage pressure.
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