AAI interviews decorated Korean Park Chae-soon for recurve head coach's role

Kolkata, Jul 4 (PTI) The Archery Association of India has shortlisted decorated South Korean Park Chae-soon as its new recurve head coach and on Saturday had “advanced talks” to appoint the multiple Olympic gold medal-winning coach to spearhead India’s campaign for the Los Angeles 2028 Games, after negotiations with compatriot Kisik Lee fell through over financial differences.

Park, one of the most accomplished coaches in world archery, underwent an one-hour Zoom interview with the AAI top officials and is expected to take charge after the 2026 Asian Games, with the Federation planning a long-term overhaul of the recurve programme.

“His one-hour Zoom interview with the Archery Association of India has gone positively and AAI is quite convinced

of him. We are contemplating bringing him on board after the Asian Games,” a top official told PTI.

“The Asian Games are too short a time frame and we need some time to complete the formalities. By November he should come on board. We are looking at a contract till LA 2028, but he is keen to continue beyond the Ahmedabad 2030 Commonwealth Games and till the Brisbane Olympics in 2032.” Biggest challenge ============ During the interaction through an interpreter, Park made it clear that taking charge of India appealed to him because it represented perhaps the biggest challenge of his coaching career.

“India would be a new challenge and like a final frontier for me. I’ve proved it with Korea and India would be the ultimate challenge,” he said through an interpreter.

“I only work for Olympic gold medals. Time is short for LA 2028, but I will guarantee that we will win a medal there and I will give my 100 per cent.” It is learnt that Park’s proposed financial package is significantly lower than what Lee had sought.

Lee’s appointment had appeared all but certain earlier this year before negotiations broke down over his demand for a monthly salary of USD 20,000, excluding taxes.

The move marks AAI’s second attempt to bring in an elite foreign recurve coach after Baek Woong Ki stepped down following the Paris Olympics.

One of archery’s most decorated coaches ========================== Park, 61, brings with him one of the strongest coaching resumes in international archery.

A former South Korean international archer, he has been part of Korea’s golden era, serving as coach of the London 2012 Olympic women’s team, the Rio 2016 Olympic men’s team, before being elevated as the overall head coach of the Korean national team for the Tokyo Olympics.

He is widely credited with discovering and nurturing Ki Bo-bae, one of the greatest archers in Olympic history.

Under Park’s guidance, Ki won individual and team gold medals at the London Olympics before claiming her third Olympic gold in the women’s team event at Rio 2016.

Away from the national team, Park built a formidable programme at Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall, where he served as head coach from 2003 to 2021.

During his 18-year stint, his archers amassed an extraordinary 573 medals, comprising 173 international and 400 domestic medals.

His success extended beyond the Olympics.

=========================== As Korea’s national head coach, he oversaw the country’s clean sweep of all five gold medals at the 2021 World Archery Championships in Yankton, USA.

After leaving the Korean setup, Park took over as Vietnam’s national coach from 2023-2025 and was exploring another overseas assignment before AAI approached him.

His achievements have earned him some of South Korea’s highest coaching honours, including the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee Coaching Excellence Award (2013), the Korea Sports Award (Presidential Coaching Award) in 2016, and the prestigious Order of Blue Dragon in 2025.

If appointed, Park will oversee both the senior and junior recurve programmes with the primary objective of ending India’s long wait for an Olympic medal in the discipline.

Cousins takes charge of compound ======================= While AAI finalises the recurve appointment, it has already secured its compound programme by appointing multiple-time former world champion Dave Cousins of the United States as chief coach till the Los Angeles Olympics.

The 49-year-old, who recently joined the Indian camp, will begin his first international coaching assignment at the upcoming Madrid World Cup after conducting a high-altitude training camp in Shillaru, Himachal Pradesh, before the squad returned to its base at SAI Sonipat.

The Indian team is scheduled to leave for Madrid in the wee hours of Sunday.

A legendary compound archer with a competitive career spanning more than two decades, Cousins has previously coached clubs and state teams in the United States but this will be his first assignment with a national team.

His appointment assumes added significance with compound archery set to make its Olympic debut at LA 2028 through the mixed team event.

It came after negotiations with Italian legend Sergio Pagni, who guided India to a five-gold sweep at the Hangzhou Asian Games, failed over contractual terms. PTI TAP AM AM