For several decades, an Asian country has dominated archery. In Paris next summer, South Korea will once again be in the ideal position of number 1 leader.
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It’s a bit of the other side of the coin. Against all expectations, the public will not be able to applaud the triple Olympic champion of Tokyo in 2021, An San, who did not manage to find a place within the South Korean delegation during selection events.
The 23-year-old archer failed to join the national team this year, because she failed to finish in the top 16 », Reported the South Korean media STN last March. A total of 24 South Korean athletes competed. “ This serves as a reminder that winning a competition at home is not necessarily easier than winning an international competition. », added STN.
Fierce competition between compatriots
In Japan, An San became the first woman, since 1904, to win three gold medals in archery in the same edition, thanks to titles in the individual, team and mixed team events. But given the density in South Korea, even the best are not guaranteed a place at the Olympics. In this country of around 52 million inhabitants, competition is fierce. Making the national team seems more complicated than winning gold at the Games.
A little history. In 1981, the city of Seoul was designated to host the 1988 Olympic Games. The political authorities relied on archery to shine at home. From then on, all students in the country were invited to practice this discipline of precision and concentration, which appeared at the Olympic Games from 1900 to 1920, then reintroduced in 1972 in Munich. This East Asian country can then count on the automobile firm Hyundai as a sponsor, which also finances the World Cup events.
Professionally trained from the age of 10
Since the Sydney Games in 2000, South Korea has decided to concentrate its resources on a few sports to shine at the Olympics, and archery is part of this strategy. Young people are detected very early and can be trained professionally from the age of 10. At this age, they are capable of shooting 300 to 600 arrows per day, up to 1,000 before competitions (for example, a French schoolboy training in the U23 pole shoots 150 to 200 arrows per day). day). In 2000 in Sydney and in 2004 in Athens, all the winning athletes were trained by South Korean technicians.
South Korea is the most successful nation in archery at the Olympics, with 43 podiums and 27 gold medals. In Paris, South Korea will be represented by six people, three women and three men. Lim Si-hyeon has been promoted to leader of the women’s team and will bring along new recruits Jeon Hunyoung and Nam Suhyeon. Koreans have won every Olympic team title since the event was introduced in Seoul.
The men’s team will also go into Paris as heavy favorites for a third Olympic gold medal in a row. South Korean Olympic medal-winning archers receive a lifetime bonus, distributed every month. For an Olympic title, its value is around 1,200 euros.
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