Just in time for event, Dhiraj returns with two medals

For days leading up to the Archery World Cup in Florida, Dhiraj Bommadevara was gripped in uncertainty.

- Rutvick Mehta

MUMBAI: Persistent delay over his US visa kept his participation hanging in the air. Once he did land in Florida after the visa belatedly arrived, the recurve qualification round on the afternoon of April 9 was one hour away.

Rushing straight from the airport to the venue in Auburndale and checking in after the scramble, the Paris Olympian checked out of the World Cup with an individual bronze to go with the men's team silver.

From Wednesday's qualification round in which he stood 6th as the top-scoring Indian, to Sunday's bronze playoff in which he rallied to down Spain's Andres Temino Mediel 6-4, Dhiraj did not get frazzled by the weeks of wait, hours of suspense and days of jetlag. On the contrary, he revelled in it. "I just about made it for the start of the qualification round. It was an interesting situation for me, something I had never experienced before. I took it as a challenge, thinking, mazaa aayega (it will be fun)," Dhiraj said over phone before boarding his flight from Florida, this time in much calmer settings.