Sheetal Devi won the 2024 Sportstar Aces Popular Choice Award for Moment of the Year at the Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai on Thursday.
Sheetal made headlines in October when she shot her way to three medals at the Asian Para Games.
The 16-year-old, who hails from Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir, was born with phocomelia, a disorder causing underdeveloped limbs. Without arms, she learned to use a bow and arrow using her feet and started training fulltime in archery only two years ago.
Videos of her mounting the bow and using her right foot and mouth to steady the equipment before shooting perfect 10s went viral. From celebrities to the political brass, praise flooded in for the resilience and talent of the young girl, who eventually went on to finish the year as the No. 1 archer in open compound.
The event is presented by Amul, powered by IDFC First Bank in association with Indian Oil. The associate partners are LIC India, State Bank of India, Greyon Cosmetic, India Cements, United India Insurance, NTPC, Ramaiah University. The realty partner is Casagrand, with online grocery partner Big Basket, colour partner Nippon Paint and education partner Christ University. The co-sponsors are Pratiyogita Darpan, SSVM, PSG, Signpost, Digital OOH Partner, NDTV, Broadcast Partner, WordsWork, PR Partner and Dailyhunt, Online Streaming Partner.