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Archery (Olympic sport since 1900)
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History |
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Equipment |
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Glossary |
About
Anyone familiar with the legend of Robin Hood knows archery competitions date back at least to mediaeval times. Indeed, today's archers still honour the fabled outlaw. The term "Robin Hood" now refers to splitting the shaft of an arrow already in the target with another arrow.
The equipment has crept forward in its technology since Robin and his merry men had the run of Sherwood Forest, but the sport of archery remains essentially unchanged. A recurve bow coated in fibreglass has become standard, and arrows made of aluminium and carbon graphite can travel more than 240km/h, but the most important requirements are straightforward: steady hands, strong shoulders, flexible muscles, sharp eyes and nerves of steel.
Archery was a feature of the Olympic Games several times from 1900 to 1920, but then disappeared for more than 50 years. It reappeared at Munich in 1972 and has remained a fixture ever since.
Competition
At the Sydney 2000 Games, archers shot at targets 70 metres away in four events - men's and women's individual and team competitions. The target is 1.22 metres in diameter and marked with 10 concentric rings. From where the archers stand, it looks about the same size as the head of a thumbtack held at arm's length.
The centre ring, or bullseye, measures 12.2 centimetres in diameter, and counts 10 points. The outer ring counts one, and the rings in between increase by one point in value as they near the centre.
Archers, or teams, compete in head-to-head matches in single elimination after being ranked from one to 64. The semi-finals winners decide the gold and silver medals in the final, and the semi-finals losers shoot for the bronze.
List of events
-- individual (FITA Olympic round - 70m) Men
-- team (FITA Olympic round - 70m) Men
-- individual (FITA Olympic round - 70m) Women
-- team (FITA Olympic round - 70m) Women
History
Discipline's origin
Archery is one of the oldest arts still practised. This history will not only take you through a journey on the evolution of archery, but also through the history of mankind. Indeed, both are closely linked. Evidence of ancient archery has been found throughout the world, even in Australia where it had previously been thought that the bow had not been used.
Although archery probably dates back to the Stone Age (around 20,000 BC), the earliest people known to have used the bow and arrow were the ancient Egyptians, who adopted it at least 5000 years ago for purposes of hunting and warfare.
In 1200 BC the Hittites used the bow from light, fast chariots, enabling them to become dreaded opponents in Middle Eastern battles. Their neighbours, the Assyrians, used archery extensively. They built bows from several different types of material: tendon, horn and wood. They also gave the bow a new, recurved shape that was far more powerful and as it was shorter, it was more easily handled by an archer on horseback.
In China, archery dates back to the Shang dynasty (1766-1027 BC). A war chariot of that time carried a three-man team: driver, lancer and archer. During the ensuing Zhou (Chou) dynasty (1027-256 BC), nobles at court attended sport archery tournaments that were accompanied by music and interspersed with elegant salutations.
English literature honours the longbow for famous victories in the battles of Cr¨¦cy, Agincourt and Poitiers. The first known organised competition in archery was held at Finsbury, England, in 1583 and included 3000 participants! By the time of the 30 Years' War (1618-1648), it was clear that the introduction of the gun had made the bow a weapon of the past. From that time on, archery developed as a recreational sport.
Olympic history
Archery first appeared in the Olympic Games in 1900 and was contested again in 1904, 1908 and 1920. In those four Games, it was possible for an archer to compete in numerous events and win several medals. Hubert van Innis (BEL) is the most decorated archer in Olympic history, winning six gold medals and three silvers in 1900 and 1920. Archery was re-introduced to the Olympic programme in 1972 with individual events for men and for women; John Williams and Doreen Wilber of the USA captured the gold medals. Team competition was added to the medal programme in Seoul in 1988.
Equipment
Armguard
A guard that protects the arm from abrasion when an arrow is shot.
Arrow
Arrows have a maximum diameter of 9.3 millimetres. Each arrow must be marked with the competitor's name or initials, while archers use distinctive colours and patterns on the arrow fletching to distinguish their arrows.
Bow
The bows draw weight is around 22 kilograms for men's competition, and around 15kg for women's.
The bow consist of a riser and two limbs.
Bowstring
The string of a bow. Most strings are made of a hydrocarbon product called dyneema.
Chestguard
Plastic or leather, to keep clothing out of the way and to protect against a bowstring at release from injuring the body.
Finger tab or shooting glove
A flat piece of leather worn as a guard to protect the finger when the arrow releases.
Fletching
The real or artificial feathers at the back of an arrow designed to make it fly straight.
Hand grid of handle
The handle of the bow.
Quiver
A container for holding arrows, usually worn around the waist.
Nock
The attachment on the rear end of an arrow that holds it in place on the bowstring.
Sight
A mechanical device placed on the bow to help the archer aim; also called a "bowsight".
Stabiliser
A weight mounted on the bow to stabilise it during and after a shot.
Target
The target may be 1.22 metres in diameter, but, to the archer standing those 70 metres away, it appears about the size of a thumbtack held at arm's length. The centre of the bullseye stands 1.3 metres above the ground. The bullseye is 12.2 centimetres in diameter.
Glossary
Archers' box: An area a metre behind the shooting line where the archers in a team event await their turns.
Back: The part of the bow handle that faces the target when the archer is shooting.
Belly: The part of the bow handle that faces the archer when shooting.
Blind: A dugout where scoring judges, the archers' representatives and a spotter sit.
Bow hand: The hand that holds the bow, usually the left hand.
Bowman: An archer.
Bowshot: The distance a bow sends an arrow.
Bullseye: The central spot on the target.
Draw: To pull back the bowstring and arrow in preparation to shoot.
End: A group of arrows, usually three, shot in one sequence before the archer goes to the target to retrieve them.
Group: 1. The pattern of arrows on a target. 2. To shoot three arrows on a target.
Limb: The upper or lower portion of a bow from the handle to the tip.
Match: Head-to-head competition between two individuals or teams.
Nock: To place an arrow on a bow string.
Recurve: To curve or bend back or backward. The form limbs have in the bow called recurve .
Robin Hood: The act of splitting the shaft of an arrow already in the target with another arrow.
Round: A stage of competition where an archer is trying to advance from one stage to the next.
Scoring hit: Any arrow that hits the target and counts for points.
Shaft: A long pole or rod forming the body of an arrow.
Shooting line: The line the shooter stands on.
Spotter: A person who identifies each archer's score with a telescope and enters the score.
Tip: The pointed extremity of an arrow.
Waiting line: A line at least five metres behind the shooting line, limiting where archers not competing may stand.
X: A mark denoting an arrow that strikes the inner circle, or X10, within the bullseye on a target.
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