After winning Bangladesh’s first-ever international gold medal in archery, Abdur Rahman Alif’s ambitions have grown even bigger.
This marks Alif’s maiden gold on the global stage, and the young archer is naturally ecstatic. Riding the high from his Asia Cup Archery victory, he now sets his sights on the Olympics, hoping to carry that joy and success onto an even grander platform.
On Friday, in the men’s recurve singles final of the Asia Cup Archery (Leg-2) held in Singapore, Alif defeated Japan’s Miyata Gakuto 6-4 in set points to claim the gold.
Just last September, Alif had fallen short in the Asian Youth Archery Championship final against a Chinese opponent. This time, he tasted sweet success.
Though he has participated in tournaments like the Archery World Cup, Asian Archery Championship, and Asian Archery Grand Prix, medals had eluded him until now. Securing a medal abroad has made Alif not only happy but proud.
“My feelings… I’m really happy. For the first time, I heard my national anthem played (after winning gold) outside the country. This is my first international gold medal. It’s for everyone back home,” he said.
Until recently, Bangladesh’s recurve archery stars were Roman Sana and Hakim Ahmed Rubel, both of whom moved to the United States to continue their careers. Roman even represented Bangladesh at the Olympics, while Sagar Islam earned a direct Olympic ticket.
Coming from Pabna, Alif now has his eyes firmly set on the 2028 Olympics. The 19-year-old hopes to qualify directly for the Los Angeles Games. To achieve this, he has also expressed the need for more opportunities to compete internationally.
“My goal is to win an Olympic medal. We are training accordingly under the coach’s guidance. Everyone is supporting us. With the 2028 Olympics ahead, we are practicing with that target in mind,” he shared.
“The facilities are good, but we want to play in more tournaments. That will improve our ranking and help us qualify as a team for the Olympics. I will give my best, Inshallah. If God wills, we can achieve everything.”
