The Paris Paralympics are underway, and India can already claim a new "shooting star": 17-year-old Sheetal Devi, reported by the AP to be the youngest athlete in the women's para archery event. Devi has a condition called phocomelia, which causes the upper or lower limbs to be shortened or missing altogether, and she's one of just four armless archers at the Paris competition (and also the only female of that group). She has also just gone viral, after hitting a bull's-eye right off the bat on Monday during the women's individual compound open event 1/8 elimination round, per Today.
Devi can be seen, after prepping her bow and arrow with her feet and mouth, taking her shot here, to the praise of the announcer, who exclaimed, "Oh, what a start!" Devi lost the round by just one point and ended up taking home the bronze—but her fans, old and new, went on to laud her for that bull's-eye. "Poetry in motion," one commenter gushed. "Brilliantly done" and "absolutely impressive" were other descriptors for that accomplishment.
Olympics.com has more on Devi, described as "athletically gifted" and someone who "never let her limitations stop her from making the most of her childhood." She even "enjoyed climbing trees as a pastime," an activity that "helped her build a strong upper body which proved to be a turning point later in her life." "Etched in my heart forever!" Devi wrote on X in response to her performance on Monday. Much more on her here. (More Paralympics stories.)
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