The first Summer Olympics were held in 1896 in Athens, Greece, and only had 43 events total. Since then, over 250 events have been added to the lineup, some have been removed, and others have been updated to meet more modern times and equipment. One of the sports that’s been around the longest is archery.

Where It Began

While not recognized as the first Olympic sport, the first evidence of archery was found in South Africa and dates to almost 65,000 years ago. It was originally used as a tool for hunting and war, but the first recorded archery tournament occurred between 1027 and 256 BC in what’s now known as the People’s Republic of China.

Archery first joined the Summer Olympics in 1900, reappearing in the 1904, 1908, and 1920 competitions before returning to the games in 1972. The international archery federation, known as World Archery, was founded in 1931 during the Olympic lull. Since its joining and reinsertion, Korea has been the most successful nation in the sport of archery.

Today’s Competition

Archers attempt to hit a 122-centimeter (about 4 feet) target from 70 meters (about 230 feet) away. The goal is to get your arrows as close to the center of the target as possible to score more points. In modern-day Olympic archery, there are five events:

• Individual
  • Men’s
  • Women’s
• Team
  • Men’s
  • Women’s
  • Mixed – made its debut in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
    • 1 male, 1 female team member

The Individual events begin with what’s known as the “ranking round.” All 64 archers have 72 arrows to determine their place among the competition. Once the rankings are determined, brackets are formed, with the top-ranked archer facing the archer ranked sixty-fourth, the second-ranked facing the sixty-third ranked, and so on. These head-to-head competitions are single elimination and continue until a victor is determined.

The Team events use the rankings from the Individual competition, but the top four teams receive a bye (participants advance to the next round without competing). This leaves the remaining teams of 3 to battle for their spot in the next round in a single-elimination bracket.

Skills

As one of the oldest sports, it can be easy to dismiss the skills needed to succeed in archery. Make no mistake; it takes immense concentration, dexterity, and confidence, and archers must overcome their anxiousness to perform well. One incorrect release can cost the competition.

Beyond the mental challenges, archers need a great deal of visual performance to compete. One study indicated that the most important visual functions for archers are:

• Visual acuity
• Contrast sensitivity
• Stereopsis – depth perception and ability to see in three-dimension (3D)
• Eye-hand coordination
• Eye-body coordination – broader term referring to the coordination of the eyes with any part of the body
• Reaction time

Can EyePromise® Help Archers?

As the Official Eye Vitamin of Sports™, the short answer is yes! EyePromise has the right blend of high-quality, natural ingredients to support and enhance an archer’s visual performance. EyePromise also has the certifications athletes are looking for, including NSF Certified for Sport and a 60-day, money-back satisfaction guarantee. The expertly crafted formulations that make up EyePromise’s visual performance line have been demonstrated in clinical trials to improve:

• Visual acuity
• Contrast sensitivity
• Visual range
• Glare recovery
• Light sensitivity
• Visual processing speed and reaction time
• Focus

Learn more about performance and eye health.

For the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, archery competitions begin Thursday, July 25, at 2:30 pm CT. Tune in to NBC or Peacock to catch the action, but don’t forget to protect your eyes with EyePromise! Find out which product is right for you.