Tournaments

Here is an example of the Greenwood Osterly Archery Tournament calender, located in the United Kingdom. 


http://www.ukarchery.org/diary.htm

Hall Of Fame

We have three candidates who have the honour to be placed into Archery's Hall Of Fame. 

Hubert Van Innis

Mr Van Innis was a Belgian competitor in the sport of archery. Van Innis competed in four events and won two first prizes and a second prize, and is now considered by the International Olympic Committee to have won two gold medals and a silver medal. 

His wins came in the shorter events, the 33 metre sections of each of the Au Chapelet and Au Cordon Doré competitions. In the 50 metre Au Cordon Doré, van Innis finished second to Henri Hérouin by a score of 31-29, with Émile Fisseux close behind at 28 points.

Van Innis had his worst of his four outings in the 50 metre Au Chapelet event, finishing in fourth place.

He also lost to Hérouin in the Championnat du Monde event, 22-16, though that event is not considered Olympic by the IOC.

At the 1920 Summer Olympics held in Antwerp, van Innis won four gold and two silver medals, bringing up his total Olympic medal count to six gold and three silver medals. 

He's the most successful archer in Olympic history.

Oh Kyo-Moon

An archer from South Korea, he won a team silver medal and an individual bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Oh also was a member of Korea's gold medal men's archery team at the 2000 Summer Olympics. 

In the men's individual competition he finished sixth.

He was the world record holder for a single FITA with a score of 1379. That score was beaten by Oh Jin-Hyek at 2009 World Championship in Ulsan with 1386 points.

Jan Yong-Ho

Another archer from South Korea, Jang competed for Korea at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's individual archery. He won his first match, advancing to the round of 32. In the second round of elimination, he was again victorious and advanced to the round of 16. The third match was Jang's downfall, as he lost to eventual bronze medalist Tim Cuddihy of Australia. Jang placed 11th overall.

Jang was also a member of Korea's gold medal men's archery team at the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Jang competed in Archery at the 2006 Asian Games and won a gold medal with the South Korean team.

Jang holds the world record for 90 meters with a score of 338 points shot during the 2003 New York World Championship, tournament where he remarkably only shot one single arrow outside the gold ring.

How To Play?

For a beginner, archery can be difficult. Once we have mastered, nothing can stop you to shoot a bull’s eye.


1. Hold the bow of in the hand opposite of your dominant eye, but holding the bow in the dominant hand side is not a problem.
2. To shoot an arrow, assume the correct stance. 
3. Make sure your body is perpendicular to the target and the shooting line, with the feet placed shoulder-width apart.
4. Before you shoot, load the arrow. Make sure the bow is pointed toward the ground to avoid fatality. 
5. Place the back of the arrow to the bowstring with the nock ( a small plastic component).
6. Hold the bowstring and arrow with three fingers. 
7. Raise the bow and draw it back. Place the hand with the string lightly at an anchor point. Either at the corner of the mount or on the chin.
8. The bow arm is held outwards towards the target.
9. Make sure you are standing straight, forming a ‘T’. 
10. Release the arrow by relaxing the fingers of the drawing hand. Do not be hasty. You might injure yourself from the recoil of the bowstring.
11.    If you miss, try again. Practice makes perfect!


Follow the following, perfect any flaws in your technique, and soon you’ll call yourself an archer.

Rules & Regulations

In any sport, there are rules and regulations. Follow the following to play archery fair and square.


I. At least two equipment divisions will be made:

a. traditional longbow 

b. modern longbow

c. traditional recurve

II. All competitors must shoot wood arrows. 

III. Binoculars and spotting scopes are not permitted. 

IV. Specific equipment rules: 

A. General Rules 

                                                                                    

1. Longbow - is defined as a wood bow without recurve in 

the limb tips.

2. Stabilizers or counterweights, or bows built up to 

serve the same function will not be allowed. 

3. Protruding bow sights will not be allowed. 

4. No cusion plungers or similar mechanical or metal 

apparatus shall be used. However, the side of the bow where the arrow 

comes in contact with it may be built out slightly with a leather pad.  

               

5. Arrows will be of wood and fletched with feathers. 

6. Finger protection in the form of finger stalls or tips, 

gloves, shooting tab or tape is allowed to draw, hold back and 

release the string, providing it does not incorporate any device to help 

in holding, drawing and releasing the string. 

B. Traditional Longbow Division Rules: 

1. British Longbow or American flat all wood bows without 

arrow rests, shelves or center shot cut shelves are used in this division.    

        

2. Horn string nocks are not required. 

3. Fast flight or other similar newer type (limited stretch) strings (except Dacron) are not allowed. 

C. Modern longbow Division Rules: 

1. Longbows made with fiberglass laminates or other "modern" man-made materials are allowed in this division. 

2. Arrow rests, shelves and center shot cut shelves are 

also allowed.

D. Traditional Recurve Division Rules: 

1. Recurve bows with wood handles or risers are allowed in this division. Limbs may be wood or laminated with fiberglass or other "modern" man-made materials. 

2. Arrow rests, shelves and center shot cut shelves are also allowed. 

Equipments

In the art of archery, its equipment consists of:

1. Bows

2. Arrows

3. Release aids

4. Stabilisers

5. Protective equipment

Bows

A bow is a flexible arc that shoots arrows by means of elastic energy. Essentially, the bow is a form of spring powered by a string or cord. As this string is drawn, energy is stored in the flexible limbs of the bow; the energy is transferred to the arrow when the string is released, projecting it much farther than a weapon could be thrown.

There are 2 types of bow available in archery:

1. Recurve bow

2. Compound bow

Recurve bow


A recurve bow has tips that curve away from the archer when the bow is strung. A recurve bow stores more energy that a straight-limbed bow, because more is stored and delivered more efficiently, giving a greater amount of energy and hence speed, to the arrow. It is the bow mostly used by archers in the Olympics, as well in many competitive events.


The bow is usually made from multiple layers of fibreglass, carbon or wood.

The modern recurve bow

Compound bow

A compound bow is a modern bow that uses a levering system, usually of cables and pulleys, to bend the limbs. The limbs of a compound bow are much stiffer than a recurve bow. This stiffness makes the bow more energy-efficient than other bows.

The compound bow is little-affected by changes in temperature and humidity and it gives superior accuracy, velocity, and distance in comparison to other bows.

This sort of bow is normally used in hunting games.

The glorious hunting compound bow

Arrows

The most common form of arrow consists of a shaft with an arrowhead attached to the front end with fletchings and a nock attached to the other end. Shafts are typically composed of solid wood, fibreglass, aluminium alloy, carbon fiber or composite materials.  

Wooden arrows are prone to warping, while fibreglass arrows are brittle but can perform well. Aluminium shafts were a very popular high-performance during the 20th century due to their lighter weight equals higher speed.

Today, arrows made of composite materials are the most popular tournament arrows at Olympic Events.

Different kinds of arrows

Release Aids

When such a device was first invented, it was known as a clutch. The trigger may be an actual trigger lever which is depressed by a finger or thumb. Archers using compound bows usually use a release aid to hold the string and release it precisely. This attaches to the bowstring just below the nocking point or at the D loop and permits the archer to release the string by the use of some form of trigger. 

An example of a release aid

Stabilisers

A general term for various types of weights, usually on rods, mounted on the bow to increase stability. It is the inconsistencies of the archer that stabilisers can help to reduce. The various types of stabilisers are each designed to minimise a particular direction of movement. The successful addition of stabilisers can only be achieved by actual testing and accuracy grouping. 

A stabilizer to minimize a faulty shot

Protective Equipment

Bracer - Also known as a arm-guard, to protect the inside of the bow arm from being hit by the string and prevent clothing from catching the bow string. 

Bracer made out of plastic

Chest guards – Protection for their chests, where mostly female archers wear them.

Chest guard where mostly women wear

Thumb ring – To protect the drawing digits.

Thumb ring made from leather

History Of Archery

The invention of the bow and arrow were discovered by men of the Palaeolithic ages when it was just used for weapons for hunting food and the basic needs of survival.

Bows and arrows of the Stone Age

Archery was once a valued weapon of war used in the military for long-range shots as well as a hunting skill to target fast moving animals for example elk and deer. Later in the years, the weapon lost its popularity with the birth and widespread of efficient firearms such as guns, cannons which had a more damaging effect and long-lasting position in the military.

Men of war of the old times wore no body armour which made the arrow a destructive weapon as the men had no protection against the flying projectiles thus proving the effectives of archers, including mounted archers which used horses for the increased of speed and mobility to perform their duties with efficiency.

In Greek mythology, several Greek gods prefer the bow and arrow as their weapon of choice for example the Greek God Apollo, the son of the All Powerful God Zeus and his consort Leto.

Apollo, a Greek God who chose the bow and arrow

Stone Age

The origins of archery were found in Hungary, Germany once used by the men of the Palaeolithic or Mesolithic era. The arrows were made by pine, while the arrowheads were made of makeshaft.

In Egypt, bows and arrows made their mark with the “Nine Bows” which symbolise several people who were ruled over by the pharaoh since the unity of Egypt.

The hieroglyphics which described "Nine Bows" 

Ancient History

Japanese, Persians, Koreans, Chinese are several classical civilisation of ancient times who used a large number of archers in their armies.

Shooting arrows in large quantities caused a destructive effect against mass formations causing many armies to withdraw from battle from such a loss, thus the use of an archer was proved efficient.

Archers in Action

Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, the use for archers as well as the practice decline with the birth of modern weapons such as guns powered by gun powder and cannons which projects round-shaped projectiles with had a much greater damaging effect compared to the wooden bows and arrows.

What Is Archery?

Archery by definition is an art, practice or method of propelling arrows with the use of a bow. In the Latin vocabulary, the word archery comes from the word ‘arcus’. 

Archery of the old days has been used for hunting wild animals for the sake survival and as weapons of war and combat to defend themselves from enemies near and far.

An archer of medieval times preparing his shot

Archery of the modern times is now used as a recreational activity, a sport to be played and mastered like soccer and baseball. It is also listed as one of the many favourite hobbies among young men and women of today.

The look of a real archer

In the art of archery, those who practice archery are called archers named after the sport 

or bowman named after the bow which plays a huge role in archery.

We called those who have made archery their priority in life 

or have mastered the art of archery a ‘toxophilite’ meaning “a lover or devotee of archery".

The word ‘toxophilite’  comes from the book titled ‘Toxophilus’, by Roger Ascham, a book about longbow  archery and on the characters love for the said longbow archery. 

It is also the first book on archery written in English.

King Henry VIII, a fond archer and the inspiration for the book 'Toxophilus'