Who Is Sheetal Devi? Meet India's Armless Archer Who Bagged Arjuna Award 2023

Who Is Sheetal Devi: India's 'Armless Archer' was one of the recipients of Arjuna Award 2023.

President Droupadi Murmu presents Arjuna Award to para-archer Sheetal Devi during the National Sports and Adventure Awards 2023 at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024.

Sheetal Devi received the Arjuna Award from President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhawan during the National Sports and Adventure Award 2023. She received the award after a remarkable year in 2023 where she achieved many sporting triumphs and witnessed an incredible debut season at the Asian Para Games 2023. After receiving the sporting honour, she shared a video of herself from the award ceremony.

"This day is special!! Honoured to receive the prestigious Arjuna Award from the honourable President of India. Thank you all for the love, support & encouragement," she wrote alongside the video.

This day is special!!

Honoured to receive the prestigious Arjuna Award from the honourable President of India.

Thank you all for the love, support & encouragement. pic.twitter.com/TWUmLQgjMQ

— SheetalArcher (@ArcherSheetal) January 9, 2024

Who Is Sheetal Devi?

While there are many examples in the sporting arena of athletes overcoming difficulties to achieve sporting glory, Sheetal Devi's story still manages to stand out from the rest. Sheetal was born with a rare congenital disorder named phocomelia in Loidhar village in Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir in 2007.  This medical condition resulted in her arms not fully forming. However, come 2023, Sheetal has made the nation proud by winning multiple medals at the international stage and did not let her medical condition come in the way of a career in sports.

Sheetal Devi's Achievements

2023 was a year that belonged to the teenaged para-acher. She bagged a silver medal in the open women’s compound archery event at the World Archery Para Championships 2023 in the Czech Republic before becoming the first female armless archer to win a medal at the Para World Championships. The medal also meant Sheetal bagged a place for herself at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

At the Asian Para Games 2023, Sheetal continued her fine form and clinched the gold medal in the individual compound and mixed team events. She even bagged a silver medal in the women's doubles competition. To give more context to her achievement, she remains the only active female international archer to shoot without arms.