Dola Banerjee takes aim during the first Olympic round of the fourth national ranking meet at the SAI Eastern Centre on Friday. Picture by Santosh Ghosh

Calcutta: The archery race is hotting up. The six Athens berths that are up for grabs (three each for men and women) will see a tough fight among the top archers, who were slugging it out amid a heavy downpour on Friday at the SAI complex at the national-ranking meet.

This event, 11th of the 12 legs organised by the Archery Association of India (AAI) to prepare the players for the Olympics, saw Goutam Singh come out on top. He pipped hot favourites Satyadev Prasad, Tarundeep Rai and Majhi Sawayan in the first of the three Olympic rounds (70m).

In the women’s section, Dola Banerjee held sway, beating Reena Kumari in the final to win the first round.

The final preparatory meet will be held from June 23 to 25 in Meerut, and the candidates with highest overall rankings will board the Athens flight.

Satyadev (382.9), Tarundeep (248.6) and Sawayan (215.6) among men and Sumangala (174.8), Dola (166.8) and Reena (165.8) among women look well placed, but the equation may change at the end of Meerut leg.

Though losing out in the first round of the Rs 30,000 tournament, a cocky Satyadev said he is confident of making it to Athens. “My performance is satisfactory and I hope to carry on my good form in Athens as well,” Satyadev said.

Dola seemed more cautious. “There is still a long way to go”, she said.

Admitting that she is worried about peaking at the right time, she said: “It is entirely up to the coach to tell us whether we are peaking early or the timing is just right.”

Psychologist issue

Though the archers admitted that they benefited from a short stint with an AAI-appointed psychologist from the John Kennedy University, the officials, though, chose to differ.

According to Satyadev, “the psychologist increased our self confidence and helped us concentrate”. Dola said: “She taught us a few breathing exercises and helped us maintain our focus.”

AAI senior vice-president Paresh Nath Mukherjee, however, said “her (the psychologist’s) performance was not up to the mark”.