Different Types of Archery Competitions

Copyright 2006 Rob Daniels

The sport, of archery is considered one of the oldest traditions. The earliest people known to have used the bow and arrow were the ancient Egyptians, who adopted the weapon at least 5000 years ago. The Egyptians used bows and arrows for hunting and warfare. Ancient Egyptian arrows, have been recovered in large numbers.

The sport, of archery is considered one of the oldest traditions. The earliest people known to have used the bow and arrow were the ancient Egyptians, who adopted the weapon at least 5000 years ago. The Egyptians used bows and arrows for hunting and warfare. Ancient Egyptian arrows, have been recovered in large numbers.

In archery, the athlete use a bow to shoot arrows at a circular target. There are different kinds of competitive archery that are thriving as sports.

Field archery

Field archery includes an open-field target range, where archers shoot different arrows at different targets or different distances around a course. Archers shoot 3 arrows at each target, score and move on to the next until the trail is completed. The archers score their arrows depending on accuracy. The targets are scored based on the highest scoring area that the arrow touches, so the thickness helps.

Speed Archery

This is a variation on target archery, but the aim is to shoot arrows both quickly and accurately. The competition is won by the archer who shoots the greatest number of arrows shot into a target in one minute. The distances shot are shorter than for target archery, and are normally between 10 and 60 metres.

Flight Archery

Flight archery can be done individually or with all the group members firing at the same time. People have done it since the invention of the bow and arrow. Archers shoot a number of arrows and then search for the one which has been shot the farthest, marking it with an identifiable marker. Archers shoot a number of arrows and then search for the one which has been shot the farthest, marking it with an identifiable marker. The current world record for an arrow shot with a standard recurve target bow is 543 metres.

As technology has advanced, archers use modern day conveniences to improve their scores. Archers in modern archery competitions usually use a release aid to hold the string steady. This causes close to the same amount of tension to be used on every shot, so the arrow flight is the same. In addition, archers will often use gummy wax. The gummy wax helped to hold the arrow in place, and it lubricated the trough, giving the shot a smooth glide.