New Delhi: The Olympian archery siblings Dola and Rahul Banerjee officially inaugurated their academy at the Sports Authority of India’s archery ground within the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium complex on Sunday. Focused on recurve archery, the academy will be the first of its kind in the Capital as the siblings, even after their retirement, aspire to continue their endeavor to end India’s quest for an Olympic medal in this discipline.

Leading the way forward are archers Deepika Kumari and Atanu Das. The couple was in attendance at the inauguration as the Indian squad is preparing to depart for Shanghai for the second stage of the World Cup from May 6 to 11. “Since the Paris Olympics, Deepika and Atanu have begun their training at our Kolkata academy,” stated Rahul.

“There are no other archery academies operated by Olympians. This is unique, and the most notable aspect of this academy is the opportunity to learn from their experiences. Their mental and technical insights have proven to be extremely beneficial. Both Dola didi and Rahul are knowledgeable about the latest advancements, providing a fresh perspective on addressing technical challenges,” remarked Deepika, who, along with Atanu, is training for the World Championships scheduled to take place in Gwangju, South Korea, from September 5 to 12.

The DRB (Dola and Rahul Banerjee) Sport Foundation has established two academies in Kolkata and provides consultation to Bengal’s state academy in Jhargram and the Swami Vivekananda State Police Academy in Barrackpore. Furthermore, DRB academies are also located at KIIT University in Odisha and in Haldia, West Bengal.

“When the Sports Authority of India (SAI) opted to outsource the archery academy at JLN Stadium, we immediately took action. Our primary attraction was the capital city and the location of this stadium. We aimed to establish our presence in northern India. Archers in the NCR and the entirety of northern India can train here,” stated Dola Banerjee, the first Indian to secure an individual World Cup Final gold.

“We are in the process of establishing an academy in the tribal-dominated region of Latehar in Jharkhand, and we also have an academy in Lanjhigarh, another tribal-inhabited area (located in Kalahandi district) of Odisha,” Dola added.

"Didi and I are devising plans to visit all our academies in a rotational fashion. The objective is to expand the pool of archers as extensively as possible. We will collaborate more closely with archers who demonstrate significant potential," remarked Rahul Banerjee, the 2010 New Delhi CWG individual gold medalist.

“The cornerstone of our academy will be to offer every conceivable facility to the archers. We are aware of the challenges we encountered during our competitive endeavors. We aspire to ensure that our archers do not encounter the same difficulties,” Rahul further commented.

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