In the first stage of the Hyundai Archery World Cup, held in Shanghai last month, an intense battle between Lim Sihyeon and Li Jiaman took place. The rivalry between these two archers continued at stage two in Yecheon, where Li’s Chinese team surprised Korea with a shocking loss. However, Sihyeon managed to get revenge by beating Jiaman in the individual semifinals and went on to win her third circuit stage victory in just four appearances.
Throughout the competition in Yecheon, Lim and Jiaman exchanged positions at the top of the recurve women’s qualification leaderboard. Lim, who is ranked world number two, finished with a score of 685 points and secured the pole position with two impressive 59-point ends in her home ground. She attributed her success to the familiar competition environment in Yecheon, where she feels comfortable and performs well.
Meanwhile, Jiaman ended the day in third place with 678 points, trailing behind Lim’s Korean teammate Jeon Hunyoung (680). Deepika Kumari, who finished as runner-up in Shanghai, finished just one point behind Jiaman with a score of 677. Despite her individual success, Kumari expressed concern about her team’s performance and emphasized the importance of confidence in her technique.
The Indian recurve women’s team was seeded sixth while Sihyeon’s Korea team claimed the top spot ahead of China. The ongoing rivalry between Lim and Li promises an exciting continuation as they will compete for the top prize at this event. The competition will proceed with recurve team eliminations on Thursday morning followed by individual match play in the afternoon.
