Veteran archery coach Harendra Singh has been a part of the archery circuit for over a few decades. An international coach, Singh has played a pivotal role at the national and state level and has also been actively involved in the development of archery at the grassroot level.
In an exclusive interview with SPOGO, he discussed the responsibilities of becoming the East Zone Talent Scout, the challenges the sport faces at the grassroot level, the experience of coaching at the International level, India’s chances at the Tokyo Olympics and coaching Deepika Kumari.
You have been nominated as the East Zone Talent Scout. What are your responsibilities in that role?
Firstly, I would like to thank the Archery Association of India and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) for nominating me as the member of the East Zone Talent Scout and entrusting me with the responsibility of five states. I'll try to fulfill my responsibilities by giving my 100% and do my best to discover talents from these states so I can give the country and states more players.
How can India improve at the grassroot level to develop archers that can compete internationally?
I've been an archery coach for the last 25 years and I have observed that in order to develop archery at the grassroot level, such as under the 'Khelo India' scheme, the focus should be on the panchayat and school level. When we started in Jharkhand from the school level, 1000 archers had come and these kids did really well and even played for India, such as Rimil Biruli, Deepika Kumari and they started playing from the school level. In order to strengthen our grassroots, we need to focus on panchayat, block, zilla and schools with several small training centres opening up so that we grow stronger.
What are the challenges that you face in promoting archery as a sport and developing future athletes?
We have a lot of talented players as well as emerging players in this sport but the biggest challenge we face is that the equipment that is required is very expensive and we find it hard to provide for them. Even when we manage to get the government or sponsors ready for it, the process takes so long that the kids end up getting disheartened. However, under ‘Khelo India’ many kids are being provided with the equipment. So if all the kids are provided with them, especially focusing on the under 12 kids from school and panchayat level, we will have many more players like Deepika Kumari and Jayanta Talukdar.
You have been the Indian archery team coach in International competitions and have also trained the state team, what has the experience been like?
I was associated with the National Archery team for the last 12 years and I am currently working with the state team. I think our players do well when they are fit and compete with a positive mindset along with the killer instinct and intent to do well. Archers such as Deepika, Jayanata and Tarundeep Rai have that killer instinct which is rare in India. However, under ‘Khelo India’ and SAI camps, we have more physios and physiologists joining us, the players are getting more exposure. I believe that with more tournaments and International exposure, the players will gain more experience and their game will improve.
How optimistic are you of India’s chances of winning medals in archery at the Tokyo Olympics?
Our performance in the last two Olympics has been very good. The girls team at the last Olympics featured five archers and they performed exceptionally well. Indian archers have been doing well since the last 8-10 years. There are just a few things or a few points that needed to be worked on. The archers we presently have and the selection process that is currently going on is very good and both the men and women archers are at the same level which is why our country’s archery team is very strong. I’m optimistic that we will definitely win medals in both the men and women's category in the Tokyo Olympics.
The Archery Association of India has selected 24 compound men and women archers. Who do you think are the favourites to go through the final selection trials?
The method with which the top 24 players have been shortlisted and the selection process that has been undertaken is really good. The Archery Association of India and SAI are doing a great job at the selections together, with only those archers who can maintain their form and killer instinct such as Deepika Kumari and Tarundeep Rai being selected with the help of round robin events. I think Tarundeep Rai is a confirmed selection, while the number 2 and 3 could change.
You have been the coach of India’s most famous archer, Deepika Kumari. How proud are you of all her accomplishments?
I am very proud of the fact that when this girl joined archery, she was very weak physically. When we got her tested by some talent experts, her physique was lagging behind in some ways. She has worked extremely hard on herself. I remember she told me before the Commonwealth Games in Kolkata that she will definitely win a gold medal. She ended up winning two gold medals. I’m extremely proud that Deepika did what she set out to do and if we had three or more archers like her, we would definitely win at the Olympics.
