Bangladesh archers strike gold with 10-medal haul

Bangladesh wrapped up a successful campaign at the Asia Cup Archery Stage 2 tournament in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, on Thursday, winning 10 medals, including three golds, across two days of competition.

Bonna Akter spearheaded the achievement by clinching gold in the compound women's individual event, defeating Kazakhstan's Milana Burleva 145–143 in a thrilling final.

The Bangladeshi archer held a narrow one-point lead after each of the first four ends before delivering a perfect 30 in the final end with three 10-point shots. Burleva managed 29 in the closing end as Bonna sealed the title by two points.

The victory came a day after Bonna narrowly missed out on a double crown. She had already helped Bangladesh win gold in the compound women's team event alongside Sreeporna Biswas and Kulsum Akter Mone, who defeated Kazakhstan 230–220 on Wednesday.

Bangladesh's recurve men's team also struck gold on Thursday. Abdur Rahman Alif, Md Sagor Islam and Abdullah Al Mohammad Rafi recovered from losing the opening set to beat Kazakhstan 6–2 in the final.

Saima Salahuddin settled for silver in the recurve women's individual event after surrendering an early 4–0 lead to Iran's Mobina Fallah, who fought back to win 6–4.

Alif added a bronze in the recurve men's individual event, defeating Azerbaijan's Mahammadali Aliyev 7–3, while Bangladesh's recurve women's team also claimed bronze.

The country's medal tally was further boosted by two silver medals in the compound men's and mixed team events on Wednesday, with both teams losing their finals to Kazakhstan. Bangladesh also secured two bronze medals in the compound men's and women's individual events.

The Bangladesh Archery Federation congratulated the athletes, coaches, officials and support staff for their contributions to the country's impressive campaign.

Bonna's individual gold and the recurve men's team's triumph highlighted Bangladesh's strong showing at the international tournament, underlining the country's growing competitiveness in archery.