Archers in high spirits

The Indian archers are heading for Athens, determined not to let pressure affect their performance at the Olympic Games, beginning next week.

"I am confident about a medal in the team event, though I cannot say anything about the individual events," Tarundeep Rai said at the send-off ceremony for the six archers at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Delhi on Friday.

The 25-year-old Asian Grand Prix medallist said, "It is a high-concentration game and it is the mindset which makes a difference in the game of archery."

India have earned the full quota of three men and three women via the World Championships held at New York last year.

Korea and Ukraine are the only other countries to qualify in full strength.

Another archer Satyadev Prasad said the Indian team, currently ranked fourth in the world, is on par with other countries and whoever performs better at the main event will claim the gold medal.

Sawaiyan Manjhi said, "Confidence and concentration is the key to success."

India has a record of not reaching beyond the quarter-final stage in important international events.

Dola Banerjee said her teammates are upbeat following the announcement that Railways would provide jobs to two men and two women archers of the team.

She said the women's team, including Sumangala Sharma and Reena Kumari, is ranked sixth and "we should expect step by step improvement".

The team's two foreign coaches -- Ivan Yotov of Bulgaria and Korea's Chae Hong Gi -- said the team's chances of winning a medal stands at 50-50.

Archery Association of India president Vijay Kumar Malhotra said, "We are not making any tall claims. But since this team has given better domestic and international scores than any of the previous teams, we expect them to finish in the top five."