Tokyo: India’s Tokyo Olympics archery campaign came to an end on Saturday after Atanu Das lost 4-6 in a five-setter by local favourite Takaharu Furukawa in the men’s individual pre-quarterfinals.
Fans poured in their praise for Atanu’s extraordinary efforts. Yet his outstanding performance against the 2012 London Games silver medalist was not enough as he failed to find a 10 in the fifth set and slipped to the red circle for an eight that made Furukawa win by a point in the decider.
The Indian archer started off on a slower note hitting 9, 8, 8 compared to Furukawa’s triple 9s. Atanu garnered his first point of the game, tying the second set before hitting two perfect 10s in the third. Locked 3-3 after the third set, both the archers went into an intense battle ending the fourth at 28-28.
However, he was unable to keep the pace, losing ground on the penultimate shot – a 9. Furukawa shot a 10 to take away the game. Furukawa’s experience and his efforts edged him past the Indian.
Although Atanu failed to qualify for the next round, yet he put on a great show. The Indian defeated two Olympia medalists and gave a tough competition to the 2012 London Games silver medalist Furukawa.
