Archery: Taking a bow... with arrows

Archery ranks as one of the oldest sports in the history of human civilisation, as bow and arrow were part and parcel of day-to-day life since time immemorial. The ancient Egyptians used archery for hunting and warfare, at least 5000 years ago, while competitive tournaments date back to the Zhou (Chou) Dynasty (1027-256 BC).

Archery features in many ballads and is an intrinsic part of folklore such as the famous Robin Hood.

Archery first made its Olympic debut in 1900 and was part of the Olympics for three more editions (1904, 1908 and 1920), before disappearing for 50 years. It returned to the fold in 1972 and has ever since remained a permanent fixture.

Even though the sport has undergone a number of changes in terms of technology used in the equipments and the format of the competitions, the basics still remain unchanged. The sport calls for sharp eyes, unlimited concentration and steady hands (and nerves).

In the first four editions, an archer was allowed to compete in numerous events and thus could win several medals. It was during this period Hubert van Innis from Belgium, arguably the greatest gold medallist in the history of archery, won six gold medals and three silvers between 1900 and 1920. However, when archery was reintroduced in 1972, men and women contested for individual honours. That year witnessed the domination by Americans, with John Williams and Doreen Wilber capturing gold medals.

In Seoul 1988, the team competition was added to the medal programme.

This year the archers will have the chance to contest at the Panathinaiko Stadium, where the first Olympics of the modern era took place. The stadium, which has a seating capacity of 7,500 spectators, was built on the ruins of an ancient stadium built in 329 BC.

A total of 64 men and women each take part in individual events, while the limits for team events are 16.

The archers use three different varieties of bows, namely Recurve, Compound and Bare Bow. The first named, whose limbs curve away from the archer, is the only type allowed in Olympic competitions. It is covered with fibreglass and weighs around 22kgs for men and 15kgs for women. The string of the bow is made up of a hydrocarbon product called Dyneema.

The arrows are either made of aluminium or carbon graphite and can travel more than 240 kilometres per hour.

The South Koreans are a force to reckon with, as they are the women's individual champions, apart from being the men and women's team gold medallists. Reigning gold medallist Yun Mi-jin, who is the hottest archer in the world today, spearheads the challenge. The 21-year-old is only the second person in the history of archery, after Kim Soo Nyung, to hold all four major titles - Olympic individual and team titles and the World Championship individual and team championships.

Defending titles

Yun and Simon Fairweather of Australia, the men's individual champion, are eyeing to become the first archers to defend individual titles in the history of Olympics. Yun, Park Sung Hyun and Lee Sung Jin constitute the women's team, while the men's team, consisting of Im Dong Hyun, Park Kyung Mo and Jang Yong Ho, will be keen to break the jinx and clinch the first individual title.

The 34-year-old Fairweather, who retired from the sport after his gold medal show at home in Sydney, returned last year and will be competing in his fifth Olympics.

Italy's Michele Frangilli is also in the fray for individual honours. The 28-year-old, who is the Olympic record holder in the 72 arrow ranking round with a tally of 684 points set in the Atlanta Games in 1996, will be keen to live up to his reputation of winning one major crown every year.

The US team, after stiff trials, comprises of Victor Wunderle, Butch Johnson and John Magera in the men's section, while Jennifer Nicholas, who made it to the Olympic team for the first time, along with another newcomer Stephanie White-Arnold and Janet Dykman make up the women's squad. The Dutch, meanwhile, go into Athens with Peter Elzinga and Fred van Zutphen, the top two ranked men in the world.

In the past six games, the hosts have won at least a gold in the Olympics; this year all eyes will be on Greece's Evangelia Psarra.

The International Federation for Archery (FITA), which was founded in 1931, has 132 Member Associations and is also trying to establish a base in Africa, Oceania, Central and South America.

Rules

Archers will have to hit the target, which is 1.22 metres in diameter and marked with 10 concentric rings, placed at a distance of 70 metres. The bulls-eye counts for 10 points and the outer ring one. The rings in between increase by one point in value as they near the centre.

STARS TO WATCH

Women
un Mi-jin, South Korea

Men
Simon Fairweather, Australia
Michele Frangilli, Italy

Team
South Korea