Hyderabad to host Archery Premier League Season 2 from October 8
Hyderabad, June 10(TNT): Hyderabad will host the second season of the Archery Premier League (APL) from October 8 to 18, bringing some of the world’s leading archers to the city for an 11-day competition at People’s Plaza on Necklace Road.
Organised by the Archery Association of India (AAI) with support from the Telangana Government, the league will feature six franchise teams and 48 Indian and international archers competing across recurve and compound disciplines.
The tournament follows the success of the inaugural edition held in New Delhi last year and is aimed at strengthening India’s archery ecosystem and improving the country’s prospects in international competitions, including the Olympics.
Leading Indian archers expected to participate include four-time Olympian and former World No.1 Deepika Kumari, four-time Olympian Atanu Das, 2023 Compound World Champion Ojas Deotale, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Abhishek Verma and Olympian Ankita Bhakat, alongside several international stars.
APL is currently the world’s only franchise-based archery league and enjoys the support of World Archery and World Archery Asia.
The league features a unique format in which recurve and compound archers, both men and women, compete together.
Matches will be conducted with a 15-second shot clock, five seconds shorter than the time limit used in Olympic and World Archery competitions, placing greater emphasis on speed and decision-making under pressure.
Speaking on the occasion, Anil Kamineni, Director of APL, said Hyderabad’s sporting culture, infrastructure and talent ecosystem made it an ideal host city for the second season.
He said the league aims to provide Indian archers with opportunities to compete alongside some of the world’s best athletes while helping develop archery as a spectator sport.
The six franchises competing this season are Mighty Marathas, Rajputana Royals, Prithviraj Yodhas, Kakatiya Knights, Chero Archers and Chola Chiefs.
Each franchise will field a squad of eight archers, with the competition following a double round-robin format.
The top four teams will qualify for the semi-finals, with the final scheduled for October 18.
AAI Secretary General and APL Director Virendra Sachdeva said the league was conceived to provide Indian archers with regular exposure to elite-level competition and to create a sustainable pathway towards Olympic success.
Season One of the league was won by Rajputana Royals and featured several international stars, including Olympic champion Mete Gazoz and Compound World Champion Ella Gibson.
Details regarding team squads, player signings, match schedules and broadcast partners for the upcoming season will be announced in the coming weeks, the organisers added.
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