Leisure Kicks - The essencial sport and leisure guide

Archery has a fantastic history, dating back thousands of years, and has deep roots in Britain in particular. A bow found in Somerset has even been dated back to around 2690 BC! Once a weapon of warfare (which faded out with the sinking of the Mary Rose in the 15th century), using the bow and arrow to hit targets swiftly developed into a popular pastime. Even when the introduction of firearms diminished the need for the practice of archery, it still persevered as a form of recreation and competition. There are archery societies that date back as far as the 16th century!

The Scorton Arrow is one of the world’s oldest organised sporting events, dating back to the 17th century and still going strong, while organised archery really took off with the founding of the Grand National Archery Society in 1861. Archery is one of the oldest Olympic tournaments, and became an Olympic sport in 1900. It was also competed in 1908 and 1920, but was dropped shortly after. It returned to the Olympic programme after a 52 year absence in 1972 and is now an established part of the Games schedule. In 1988 team events were also added to the programme. 

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Archery athletes line up at the 1980 Olympics
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