Principal Shukla Mohanty welcomes Reena Kumari on the campus. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Aug. 28: Reena Kumari, Jharkhand’s ace archer who represented the country in Athens, today advised young girls to take up the sport at an early stage.

Addressing a gathering at Jamshedpur Women’s College, she said though her dream to win a medal at the Olympics remained unfulfilled, she was satisfied with her performance.

She said girls should start taking interest in archery at an early stage to earn medals for the country.

Reena, who entered the pre-quarters (last 16), could not make it to the last eight. She reached the city last evening and today went to her college.

On her arrival, the college authorities felicitated her. College principal Shukla Mohanty garlanded her when she entered the campus. Sharing her experiences, Reena said the Athens tour had been a learning experience. She added that India was still far behind in terms of technology and talent compared to other countries.

Reena said the government should promote the game at the school and college levels and only then a favourable atmosphere for archery would develop in the country.

“During my stay at Athens, I got an opportunity to interact with a number of international players and learnt that they start playing the game at a very early age,” said Reena.

She added that starting early helps one to master the sport.

“When I was a child, archery was just a pastime, but now it has become a passion. I think girls are showing their talent in every field and should take up archery and try to bring laurels to the country,” she said.

Reena added that she would work hard to win the gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Reena, who won the junior national archery championship-2000, originally belongs to West Bokaro. She has been learning the ropes of the game since childhood.

Her association with the Tisco brought her to Jamshedpur in 1998, where she received the opportunity to hone her skills and participate in various competitions and training camps in Italy, Germany and Turkey.

She has remained in the top-four ranks in the national archery team since 2000. During the function, the college principal lauded the efforts of Reena and said she fought a respectable battle and her achievements at the Olympics will inspire girls of the college to take up archery in future.