New Delhi: Para archery is one of the exciting sporting disciplines competed at the ongoing Paris Paralympics 2024. The discipline was part of the first edition of the Paralympics Games in Rome in 1960 and happens to be one of the six sporting events to feature in each of the 19 editions of the quadrennial showpiece event organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). There are nine gold medals on offer in para archery across three categories – open classic bow, open compound bow, and W1.
Para archers in the open classic bows are the ones who suffer from one of their affected upper or lower limbs. Here they get the benefit of shooting from a wheelchair or a stole in case they cannot balance on their feet. Archers in this category shoot from a distance of 70 meters at a 122-centimeter-diameter target, according to Olympics.com.
Archers with disability and limited strength are part of the open compound bow. The shot is taken 50 meters away from the high seat or a wheelchair at the 80-centimeter-diameter target. The target’s blazon is reduced to leave only the 5-10 point zones unlike in the open classic bows where the range is from 1 to 10 points.
In the W1 category, para archers who have affected lower limbs, upper limbs, and trunk are allowed to compete. The W1 archers shoot without a scope or visor as seen in the above two categories. The shooting starts at a distance of 50 meters at the 80-centimeter-diameter target with target points ranging from 1 to 10.
Understanding difference between para archery and Olympics archery
Archery in para sports is said to be almost similar to what the able-bodied counterparts practice in Olympic sports. There are certain differences which separate the two.
Until 2009, para archery was governed by the International Paralympic Committee. The responsibility was shifted to World Archery, which also looks after able-bodied archery in the world of the Olympics. Many significant changes have been observed in para archery since then.
According to World Archery, para archery is the discipline for athletes classified with a physical or visual impairment. The rules for targets, competition format and matchplay are the same as for the target archery and indoor archery disciplines. In addition to the recurve and compound categories, para archery also has a W1 category for athletes with a severe impairment and a visually impaired category.
One of the notable differences is that para-archers can use assistive devices to level the playing field. The assistive devices include custom draw, release aids, mouth tabs, and wheelchairs. Classified athletes are allowed to compete in target archery with able-bodied archers while using their assistive devices.
Unlike the compound and recurve archery categories in target archery, para archery also includes the W1 category (as explained above in the article). It should be noted that compound archery is not part of the Olympics but it is included in the Paralympics Games. Recurve archery is the only discipline part of the Olympic sports.
Para archers can compete with a recurve bow in the recurve open category and with a compound bow in the compound open category. The archers in the W1 category can use either a recurve or a compound bow with limitations on draw weight.
The distance and target are similar when it comes to para archers and Olympic archers in compound (World Cup and world championships) and recurve events.
The distance to and size of the target differs in each category of the event. Compound events use a 48cm target at a distance of 50m. Recurve events are aimed at 122cm-target from a distance of 70m, as per the competition rules. In W1 events (not part of the Olympics), an 80cm target is used at a distance of 50m.
Most importantly, there are nine medal events in para archery whereas only five medal events are seen in the Olympics. The key analysis for this is the inclusion of compound and W1 categories in the Paralympics while the Olympics has five competitions solely for recurve events – men’s individual, women’s individual, men’s team, women’s team, and mixed team.
The archers in the Olympics have to take the shot in a standing position while para archers can take the shot from a wheelchair or stool depending upon the disability they are affected by (as explained above).
The Paralympic competition format is identical to the one of Target Archery. Archers shoot 72 arrows from a distance of 70 metres at a target of 122 cm. A perfect score is 720.
Competition Rules for Olympic Games and Paralympic Games
There are elimination and final rounds that determine medal events. In the singles of the Olympics and Paralympics, 104 athletes participate in the elimination round with the top eight athletes qualifying for the final rounds in the individual events.
According to the competition rules, archers shoot a series of matches in groups, each match consists of the best of five sets of three arrows for recurve and barebow. There are five ends of three arrows for the compound and W1 categories (not applicable in Olympics).
The same format is applicable in the final rounds with each archer shooting an alternate arrow.
The team events are a bit different. 24 teams go through Paralympic Games and 16 in the Olympic Games. Each team consists of three athletes, for which the seeds are based on the ranking positions in the elimination round. Archers shoot for a series of matches simultaneously. It consists of the best of four sets of six arrows (two per athlete) in recurve. In the compound, four ends of six arrows (two per athlete) are counted in a cumulative approach.
In the Para-Archery, 24 teams (each of two para-archers) are seeded according to the positions determined in the qualification rounds with the highest total score ranked as the top seed. The same format of arrows is applicable here as mentioned above in the Olympics section.
Archery in para sports is said to be almost similar to what the able-bodied counterparts practice in the Olympics sports Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
