SANDY, Utah — An 11-year-old from Sandy is winning accolades as an archer and has bigger dreams ahead.
AnirudhKalyan Pinjala started practicing archery about three and a half years ago.
“My mom took me here, and then I first tried shooting a bow and arrow. I liked it, and then I kept on doing it,” said Pinjala.
“When he first shot, he was like this, just can’t ever hold the bow. He’s so tiny, the bow is so big,” recalled his mom, Kalyani Yerra.
Now, he’s 11 years old and practices diligently for at least 3-4 days a week for two hours at Datus Archery Club in West Jordan.
“It’s so competitive; it's getting competitive over the years. And right now, I’m the state champion because I’m the best shooter in my division so far,” said Pinjala.
He has many medals to prove it, with awards in various state and national archery competitions. In early February, Pinjala won second in his category at Vegas Shoot — an archery competition where people from all over the world come to participate.
“It has a lot of intensity,” explained Pinjala. “Olympic shooters are coming, world champions are coming, and I actually got to see them and got signatures from them.”
This is Pinjala’s second time medaling at Vegas Shoot. He placed second in 2023 as well.
“I see him spend a lot of time focusing, and getting that emotional stability as well. When you shoot a bad arrow, you get emotionally sad and that’s a growth opportunity for him,” added Yerra.
But the sport is more than just about bows and arrows to Pinjala.
“It kind of feels like, wow, because Utah — America — and India, where my parents are from, so technically I’m representing two countries," he said.
In addition to the targets on the wall, he has his eyes on some bigger prizes.
“I really want to do well and become a two-time Olympic gold champion in a row, because no one has ever done that before," he said.
