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Archery Facts

Archery Facts
Archery is the practice of using a bow to propel an arrow through the air, with the intention of hitting a target. Throughout history the bow are arrow has been used as a method of hunting and as a weapon in combat. In recent times archery has become more commonly used as a competitive sport and for recreation. Many mythical heroes and figures were archers, such as Apollo, Cupid, Robin Hood and Wilhelm Tell. Archers even appear in many Chinese myths, African myths, as well as Greek, Roman and German myths. Today there are many types of bows, including compound bows, cable-backed bows, longbows and flatbows. Arrows can be made of wood, bamboo, fiberglass, aluminum, and composite materials. Archery is even a sport in the Summer Paralympic Games.
Interesting Archery Facts:
The first known use of bows and arrows in combat was in 2340BC by the Babylonians.
It is believed that bows and arrows have been used for at least 25,000 years based upon the discovery of arrowheads in Africa.
Archery is considered to be one of the oldest sports in the world.
The word archery is derived from the word arcus, a Latin term that means bow and arrows.
The first book published on the subject of archery was written by Roger Ascham in 1545 and its title was Toxophilus.
Archery has been an Olympic sport almost from the beginning. Its debut in the summer Olympics occurred in 1900. In 1924 it was discontinued and it was reintroduced in 1972.
In the 1900 Summer Olympics live pigeons were used as the target in archery competition.
In the 1904 Olympics, archery was the only women's sport.
Bhutan is the only country in the world that considers archery their national sport. Almost every village has its own archery range. Bhutan is a Buddhist nation so archery can only be used for play.
The Oscar winning actress Geena Davis participated in the US Women's Archery Championship in 1999. She came in 24th.
Archery has been featured in many movies including Brave, The Hunger Games, Rambo, Robin Hood, and The Lord of the Rings.
The bag that archers use to hold their arrows is called a quiver.
Splitting the arrow of a competitor is called a 'Robin Hood', in reference to the legend archer Robin Hood who won a competition by splitting his opponent's arrow with his own.
In most archer competitions, competitors must engrave their initials on their arrows.
Kyudo is a traditional and ceremonial form of Japanese archery.
In 1457 King James II banned golf in Scotland because he believed men were wasting time playing golf when they should have been practicing their archery skills.
The very first compound bow was made 500 years ago.
In ancient Tahiti archery was a sacred sport that could only be played by those who were high-ranking.
The first country with organized archery competitions was England in the 1500s.
Archers shoot according to their dominant eye and because of this a right-handed person may shoot with their left hand and vice versa.


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