Dronacharya of archers take a bow

P Shankaraiah, the Dronacharya of archery stands committed even at the age of 63 and continues to train many budding archers 

HYDERABAD: Far away from the madding crowds, P Shankaraiah, whose name is synonymous with archery for his dedication in scouting talent and taking the sport across the State, still shows the same commitment and passion at the age of 63.

So, when it was formally announced that the compound bow (mixed team event) would be introduced in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Shankaraiah’s joy was understandable.

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Reason? For, apart from training young talent in recurve and the Indian Round categories, the compound bow was introduced among his trainees recently, since India is traditionally known to be a force to reckon with.
Interestingly, Shankaraiah informed ‘Telangana Today’ that Khammam is home to the highest number of archery training centres. The Sports Schools of Kinnerasani (boys) and Kanchanapalli (girls) have the archery centres with each of them taking care of 40 trainees, the Eklavya Central Schools at Kothagudem and Dammapeta having archery centres and two Khelo India archery centres in Khammam and Palvoncha.

“Obviously, the inclusion of compound bow in the Olympics is a huge morale booster for all those like Thaniparthi Chikitha of Peddapalli who hail from a poor background. “We are hopeful she will do exceptionally well,” he said.

For the record, Chikitha won gold in the 37th Senior National Games in Goa, besides being a consistent performer in many national-level championships.

“Jyothi Surekha has been the pioneer in the compound bow category since the united Andhra Pradesh days with her stunning achievements. Now the IOC move should only encourage more and more to take up the sport with big dreams,” says the retired Sports Officer at Integrated Tribal Development Authority in Khammam and who never stays away from the sport even now.

Significantly, Shankaraiah is also now part of the recently appointed three-member committee formed by the Archery Association of India (the other two being Purnima Mahato and Sanjay Singh) to scout talent in rural and tribal areas.

To his credit, Shankaraiah produced G. Morappa, the first international medallist in archery from the united AP.

“There is no better joy than moulding the raw talent. I only hope Telangana produces many more champion archers,” signs off the passionate mentor, who not surprisingly never got any recognition in his 35-year-long selfless service to the sport.