Archery: The Essentials
Last Updated: Monday, September 13, 2010 | 2:43 PM ET
By Jesse Campigotto, CBC Sports
Canada's Crispin Duenas has his sights set on a medal in the men's recurve bow. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Halley's comet sightings, Toronto Stanley Cup parades, and Commonwealth Games archery medals: These are among the rarest things known to humanity.
It's been 26 years since archery — an optional sport for Commonwealth Games hosts — made its first (and only) appearance on the program. And the sport won't appear in 2014 in Glasgow, so this year offers a truly rare chance for archers to win a Commonwealth medal.
Delhi will stage four archery events for both men and women — the individual and team recurve bow, and the individual and team compound bow. Athletes entered in the individual events also compete in the team competition.
What's the difference between recurve and compound bows? Besides the shape (the tips of a recurve bow curl away from archer, while compound limbs bend back toward the archer) compound bows with levers and eccentric cams are more technologically advanced than the more traditional recurves. Compound bows are designed to reduce the force required to hold the string at full draw, allowing the archer more time to aim while exerting less effort.
In both disciplines, archers release their arrows toward the centre of a 10-ring target measuring 12 centimetres in diameter. Scoring is tabulated through a point system for piercing each of the 10 rings. The innermost ring — commonly called the bull's-eye — is worth 10 points. Each subsequent ring is worth one point less, down to the single-point outer ring.
From the regulation distance of 70 metres, the entire target in an archery competition appears to the archer's eye to be about the size of a nickel held at arm's length. The bull's-eye appears to be about the size of the head of a pin held at arm's length, and yet world-class archers routinely hit the bull's-eye with four of every six arrows.
Who to watch
Crispin Duenas (Canada): The Canadian team suffered a major blow just 11 days before the start of the Games when Kevin Tataryn and Dietmar Trillus announced they would not go to Delhi because of concerns over health, safety and poor conditions at the athletes village. Trillus's was especially damaging, as the former world champion was one of only two Commonwealth athletes rnaked in the top 12 in the men's compound bow World Cup standings. Duenas, a 2008 Olympian who is ranked third in the Commonwealth in the men's recurve, will try to fill Trillus' shoes as Canada's best medal threat on the men's side.
Ashley Wallace (Canada): The 22-year-old from Redcliff, Alta., is ranked No. 3 in the world in the women's compound bow World Cup. To win gold, she'll have to upset top-ranked Nicky Hunt of Great Britain.
When to watch (finals)
Day 4 (Oct. 7)
- Men's and women's team compound bow.
Day 5 (Oct. 8)
- Men's and women's team recurve bow.
Day 6 (Oct. 9)
- Men's and women's individual compound bow.
Day 7 (Oct. 10)
- Men's and women's individual recurve bow.
