Why Archery Has Always Been Ahead of the Recurve
by Philip Barker at Hôtel des Invalides, Paris
In the final event of the archery programme for Paris 2024, South Korea’s Kim Woojin defeated Brady Ellison of the United States to claim the men’s individual title.
In doing so he completed a clean sweep of gold in all events open to him.
It also meant that South Korea had won all the archery events here. They are traditionally strong in archery and their women have been almost completely dominant since 1988.
Only rarely has Olympic gold eluded their grasp since that time.
These Paris Games include an equal number of events for both women and men, but ever since archery was first included, it has stood out as a sport which has always been gender equal.
Back in 1908, it was included in the Olympics for the first time.
Along with the other archers shooting in the stadium at White City, Sybil “Queenie” Newall, already 53 years of age, wore a long dress for her competition. She won gold from compatriot Lottie Dod, better known as a tennis champion at Wimbledon.
The format used then by the women was a double “National Round.”
The sport was removed from the programme after 1920 but continued to develop with the foundation of the Federation Internationale de Tir à l’Arc (FITA) in 1931.
It was also the first major International Federation controlling a sport for both men and women to have a female President.
Inger Frith had been born in Denmark but had moved to Britain as a result of the war.
She became an increasingly influential figure in FITA.
In 1961 an election was held during the FITA Congress in Oslo and Frith was elected as President by 11 votes to 7, defeating former FITA Secretary Lars Ekergren.
“I am constantly aware of the high honour of being your president and the responsibilities attached to the office,” she said.
Not all officials realised immediately that Frith was a woman.
Soon afterwards the Olympic Review included a plaintive request. “She asks us very courteously to make it known that her feminine pride is slightly “hurt” when she receives letters addressed to the President of the International Archery Federation referring to her as ‘Mr.'”
Frith was determined that archery should return to the Olympic programme.
She visited Lausanne, where Lydia Zanchi, the resident secretary, gave her a tour of IOC headquarters at Mon Repos.
“To my delight, I saw archery had a place of honour in Mon Repos! On the table in the drawing room were crossed arrows, and on each side of the door in the hall were golden quivers with arrows,” wrote Frith.
Zanchi told her: “It is absolutely necessary to limit the number of sports. There is the only reason why your sport was not included in Tokyo, but it is always possible that in the future your sport has its chance!”
Frith found an ally in Miriam Meuwly who was secretary to IOC President Avery Brundage.
Meuwly wrote to Frith: “Members cannot possibly think of excluding women out of a sport which is presided over by a lady can they?” and signed off with “best ‘confraternal’ wishes for the Rome issue.”
Frith kept up the pressure. “Archery has for more than a hundred years catered for men and women shooting together,” she said in February 1966.
The decisive meeting came in April 1966 at the Hotel Excelsior in Rome where Munich was chosen to host the 1972 Games.
At the same Session it was decided that archery was to be part of the programme at the Games.
“This sport will be part of the programme of the 1972 Games. President Brundage noted that the events in this sport are mixed, that is to say men and women compete together. It was therefore necessary to authorise women to participate in the Games, in this sport.”
Frith said: “We are moving forward and as we march, we have to overcome difficulties meeting us, but we march with a purpose having planned ahead to reach our target.”
The pathway was still not completely smooth because Frith’s leadership polarised some other officials.
In 1967, FITA Vice President Lars Ekergren, part of archery’s inner ring since 1949, announced his “immediate and definite resignation as a sharp protest against Mrs. Inger Frith.”
Ekergren explained that “I can no longer share the responsibility for international leadership under her direction. I protest against her lack of sportsmanship and fair play.”
“I protest against her bad leadership,” Ekergren said. “She tries, over and over again, to get more personal power by sidestepping the discretionary power of the boards of the national archery associations through unexpected and unannounced Presidential motions at the FITA Congresses.”
Despite personality clashes, the first Olympic archery tournament was duly held at the picturesque Englischer Garten in Munich in 1972.
In those days all the competitors wore predominantly white and all shot double FITA Rounds.
The United States provided both gold medallists: Doreen Wilber won the women’s competition and her compatriot John Williams took gold in the men’s.
Now only the ranking round is staged in this way and the main competition is head to head.
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