Teer 24th Asian Archery Championships 2025 is all set to begin at the National Stadium, Dhaka on Saturday with the participation of 209 archers from 30 countries.
There will be 10 medal events across the recurve and compound categories.
A notable number of female archers are competing this year – 92 in total, including 54 in recurve and 38 in compound.
The championships will run from November 8-14, at two venues – National Stadium and Army Stadium.
Bangladesh earned the hosting rights for the third time. India and China were both contenders. When India withdrew, China remained in the contention. In the final vote, Bangladesh won by 14-10, confirming its position as host after 2017 and 2021.
The local fans will have their eyes set on homegrown players like Abdur Rahman Alif, Sagor Islam, and Bonna Akter. In the 2021 edition, Bangladesh won one silver and two bronze medals, all in team events, including silver in recurve mixed team. But in the 2023 tournament in Thailand, the team returned empty-handed. This time, the Bangladeshi archers are determined to get back to the podium.
Recurve archer Sagor Islam (currently ranked 75th) said, “We’ve trained hard all year for this event, and hopefully, that hard work will pay off. We want to bring smiles to our people.”
Abdur Rahman Alif (ranked 71st), who is also a recurve archer, said, “Many high-quality archers have come from countries like South Korea and India. They may have more experience, but we are confident in our abilities to achieve something for Bangladesh. Archery is a sport of the moment – rankings don’t always determine the outcome. Whoever performs best on the day will be the winner.”
Compound archer Bonna Akter (ranked 85th) stated, “Under the guidance of Coach Martin Frederick, we’ve trained hard for months. This championship is our chance to turn all that effort into results. We’ll give it everything we have.”
Coach Martin Frederick expressed confidence in his team. The German coach said, “I have faith in my archers. There’s some frustration among them because we couldn’t win a medal in Bangkok last time. This time, they are eager to make amends and perform well.”
The Bangladesh Archery Federation, however, prefers not to put undue pressure on the players. Kazi Rajib Uddin Ahmed Chapol, chairman of the local organising committee, said, “We hope to continue our success in this edition – please keep us in your prayers. In previous international tournaments, we’ve won more than 43 golds and over 50 silver and bronze medals combined. Of course, we want success this time too. If we can reach the semi-finals – and go beyond that – we believe we can do well in the final.”
The opening day will also feature the Archery Congress and elections at the Hotel InterContinental, where 38 voters will elect the next President of Asian Archery for a four-year term.
The candidates for the presidency are Kazi Rajib Uddin Ahmed Chapol of Bangladesh and the current president Chung Eui-sun, who has held the position since 2005, now seeking a fifth consecutive term. A South Korean billionaire, Chung is the Executive Chairman and CEO of Hyundai Motor Group.
Chapol, the founder of Bangladesh Archery and an experienced organiser, is also a member of the World Archery Electoral Board and a former Vice-President of World Archery Asia.
All eyes will ultimately be on the archers themselves – whether it’s Bangladesh’s Alif, Sagor and Bonna, India’s Dhiraj Bommadevara, Atanu Das, and Deepika Kumari, South Korea’s Seo Mingyi and Kim Yae-chan, Iraq’s Fatimah Al-Mashhadani, or perhaps an entirely new name who takes everyone by surprise.
