After a first day closed to the public to determine the top seeds, the Para archers kicked off the competition this Friday morning. The highlight of the morning was the women’s compound archery event. Following a fantastic success at the Olympic Games, the Invalides venue finally opened its doors to the Paralympic Games’ spectators.
Unlike yesterday’s sunny skies, the crowd gathered in the stands around 9 a.m. beneath a blanket of clouds. Despite the weather, the view was breathtaking: the Invalides to the left, the Grand Palais to the right, and the Eiffel Tower straight ahead. From the right stand, it was hard to imagine a more stunning backdrop.
While the stands were sparse for the early matches, they gradually filled up as the morning went on. Applause followed every arrow, but the crowd’s first real thrill came during the match between Poland’s Kseniya Markitantova and Bangladesh’s Joma Aft. After five closely contested sets, the score was deadlocked at 138-138. With the match hanging in the balance, Joma Aft shot a 10, but it wasn’t enough—the Polish archer hit the X and clinched the victory, much to the crowd’s delight.
