Leaving behind their disappointment over failing to meet expectations at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Bangladesh’s archers are heading to Iraq with hopes of winning medals.

The Asia Cup Stage II (World Ranking Tournament) will be held in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, from Saturday to October 29. A 14-member Bangladesh team, including six male and six female archers, will leave for Iraq this morning to compete in the event.

Bangladesh will compete in the recurve men’s and women’s individual events, compound men’s and women’s individual events, recurve men’s and women’s team events, and recurve and compound mixed team events. Archers from 17 to 19 countries are expected to take part.

Bangladesh Archery Federation President Kazi Rajib Uddin Ahmed Chapol expressed optimism about the team’s preparation and medal prospects.

“Preparations are going well. Between 17 and 19 countries are expected to participate in this competition. The experience from the Asian Games will help us here. To further motivate the athletes, the federation has announced a cash reward of Tk 300,000 for each gold medal,” he said on Wednesday.

Bangladesh head coach Martin Frederick is also targeting medals.

“Immediately after the Asian Games, we worked on bringing the athletes back into form. We have made all the necessary preparations to perform well in Iraq in the team and mixed team events. Our main target is to reach the podium,” he said.

Bangladesh’s archers are determined to prove themselves after their disappointing performance at the recent Asian Games. Abdur Rahman Alif said the team was motivated to do better.

“We remember the results at the Asian Games. We are going to achieve something better this time, driven by that disappointment and determination,” he said.

Compound archer Himu Bachar was also satisfied with the team’s preparations.

“Although we had limited time to practise after the Asian Games, our preparations have been good in all three categories: individual, mixed team and team events,” he said.

For Bangladesh’s archers, the challenge now is to put their Asian Games disappointment behind them and demonstrate their potential in Iraq. They will look to turn their preparations and renewed determination into medals.