India’s Olympic-bound archers were given their second shots of the COVID-19 vaccine, making them the first fully vaccinated lot of athletes from the country ahead of the Tokyo Games.
The 8 archers, the coaches and support staff were all administered the second shot at the Military Hospital in Pune.
The archers included Atanu Das, Tarundeep Rai, Pravin Jadhav and B Dhiraj (reserve) in men’s and Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat, Komolika Bari and Madhu Vedwan (reserve) in the women’s section.
“Second and final dose of the vaccine is done. Thank you so much Army Sports Institute for making everything smooth and convenient,” Atanu Das captioned his vaccination photo on his Instagram handle.
Deepika Kumari and India’s most senior archer Tarundeep Rai also shared photographs of their vaccination.
The archers are gearing up for the World Cup Stage I, to be held from 19 April, which will be the first tournament for the seniors since the coronavirus pandemic broke out.
The archers will compete in three World Cups, with the third being an Olympic qualification before the Tokyo Games in July-August.
So far, India have secured a team quota in the men’s section and an individual quota in women’s category.
The women’s team will have one last chance to qualify in the third stage of the World Cup, in Paris from 21-27 June.
(With PTI Inputs)
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