Archery
History
The bow and the arrow are definitely amongst humanity’s greatest inventions. There is evidence that the weapon was used in pre-historic times for hunting. Later, it started being used in combat and war, indeed, becoming one of the most used weapons for centuries.
With the discovery of powder and the development of more powerful weapons, archery turned into a sport, which began to be practiced in several countries. In 1828, the National Archery Association was founded in the United States, which in 1879, staged the first American Championship in the sport. In 1884, the 1st Archery Championship was staged in Great Britain.
In 1930, the International Archery Federation (FITA) was founded, which acted quickly and staged the first World Championship in Poland the following year.
Archery was included in the Olympic programme much before FITA had been founded. Indeed, it made its Olympic debut at the 1900 Games in Paris, also being part of the Olympic programme at the 1904 Games in St. Louis, London 1908 and Antwerp 1920. Between the 1924 and 1968 Games, archery did not feature in the Olympic programme. It returned at the 1972 Games in Munich and has been part of the Olympic programme ever since.
Archery arrived in Brazil in the 1950s, brought over by Adolpho Porta, a flight attendant in the Brazilian airline Panair. At the time, he was based in Lisbon, where the sport won him over. In 1955, when he returned to Brazil, he brought with him targets, bows and arrows, in addition to a rulebook published by the International Federation.
On 19 November 1958, the Metropolitan Archery Federation was founded in Rio de Janeiro. In 1991, the Brazilian Archery Federation was founded, but Brazil made its Olympic debut in the sport much before that, at the 1980 Games in Moscow.
The competition
The competition field must be flat with no obstacles for the archers. At the Olympics and Pan American Games, only outdoor and recurve or Olympic bow events are held. At the Olympics only the FITA Olympic Round – 70m events are held, individual and team, men and women.
Curiosities
Robin Hood
The legendary Middle Ages hero lends his name to one of the rarest shot in archery: the one that the archer manages to hit the back of the arrow that is already on the target and thus, splits it in two. This shot is called Robin Hood and when this happens, the athlete is allowed to take the arrow home and keep it.
Medal record
Hubert Van Innis from Belgium holds the record for the most medals won in archery at the Olympics. At the 1900 Games in Paris, he went home with two gold and a silver. Twenty years later, at the Antwerp Games in 1920, he won four gold medals and two silver.
Korean supremacy
South Korean athletes dominate archery at the international level. From the four gold medals up for grabs at the 2012 Olympics in London (FITA Olympic Round – 70m individual and team, men and women) the Koreans scooped up three.
See also
Confederação Brasileira de Tiro com Arco (CBTArco)
Site: www.cbtarco.org.br
E-mail: cbtarco@cbtarco.org.br
Federação Internacional de Tiro com Arco: www.worldarchery.org
