17-year-old armless archer leaves the world in awe with epic bullseye in Paris Paralympics

Olympic athletes always impress, but Paralympians consistently push the boundaries of what’s possible. This year, 17-year-old armless archer Sheetal Devi of Team India took center stage. Archery is tough for anyone, yet Devi—who goes by @sheetal_archery on Instagram—hit a perfect bullseye in the opening round of the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, doing so without the use of her arms.

The official Instagram handle of the Paralympics (@paralympics) shared the epic moment when Devi wowed the world. Despite not having arms, she has mastered using other parts of her body to execute a perfect shot. Devi positions the arrow using her toes and lifts the bow with her right leg. Her mouth and shoulders support her to find the most suitable aim toward her target. When she releases the arrow, it dashes across the field and flawlessly hits the center of the target. It was a bullseye! "Outrageous!" the caption read and it cannot be more relatable to what Devi had achieved.

"Every time I saw Sheetal Devi, I realized that I have been complaining my whole life for petty things. Such an inspiration she is!" said @aashish_15_0. "In a day where people cry over clothes and without working hard cribbing about how life's unfair, here's the biggest example of how they overcame everything and then won a medal. Not only breaking records but also breaking barriers in how we view ability and potential," remarked @sumit_tripathi24. "Paralympics every time teaches me to be grateful and determined," added @the_bright_tales.

Despite finishing second in the ranking round and delivering an epic bullseye in the 1/8 elimination round of the women's individual compound open event, Devi lost to Chile's Mariana Zúñiga by one point, as per My Modern Met. Devi was the only woman among the four armless archers in this Paralympics and though she lost in the women's event, her efforts paid off in the Mixed Team Compound. Along with Team India's Rakesh Kumar, Devi took home a bronze in this year's Paris Paralympics games. Last year, Devi had glorious wins, including a silver in the world championships and 2 golds and a silver in the Asian Para Games.

Born in 2007, the teen athlete grew up without fully formed arms caused by a rare congenital disorder known as phocomelia. This condition compelled her to utilize her upper body strength to do activities like climbing trees which eventually made her "athletically gifted." Following her Paralympics bronze, Devi took to Instagram to express her gratitude to her mother. "Celebrating my medal win with the woman who’s been my rock - my Maa! In early 2022, when I started a new chapter, Maa courageously left behind the comfort of her village, family, and friends, and fearlessly embraced the unknown, overcoming language barriers and standing by me every step of the way. Her unwavering love and support mean everything to me. She is my world," she captioned her post. 

You can follow Sheetal Devi (@sheetal_archery) on Instagram for more inspiring content.