Bhavani Devi became the first-ever Indian fencer to qualify for the Olympics. The sabre fencer secured a spot for the Tokyo Olympics following the events at the ongoing Fencing World Cup on Sunday.

Hosts Hungary lost in the quarter finals of the team event, allowing Korea to progress to the semi-finals. Therefore, Bhavani Devi qualified through the Adjusted Official Ranking (AOR) Method.

Two individual spots were up for grabs for the Asia and Oceania region based on the world rankings as of April 5, 2021. She is ranked 45th and occupies one of the two available slots. The 27-year-old’s qualification will be confirmed when the rankings are made official next month.

Sports minister Kiren Rijiju tweeted: “Congratulations to Indian fencer Bhavani Devi who has qualified for Tokyo Olympics! She has become the 1st ever Indian fencer to achieve the feat.”