BELEK ANTALYA, Turkey - The 50th World Archery Congress will take place just before the World Archery Championships, this September 27-28. There are twelve motions on the table for vote, several of which could have great impact on archery tournament formats and scoring systems.
BIG Potential Game Changers:
�
Eliminate the
four-distance "FITA Round" from all international competition
�
Set Match play
to be standard for all recurve elimination matches, indoors and outdoors.
� Reclassification of Para-Archery divisions
The Breakdown:
To mirror the format of
the Olympic Games, there has recently been much debate regarding the
abolishment of the FITA round from major international competition, so
that archers would compete only at a single distance, followed by elimination
matches. Following are some of the pros and cons that archery fans have noted in discussing the possible changes:
PROS:
�
Simplifies tournament planning and logistics
�
Allows for more concise events
�
Opportunity to level the playing field
CONS:
�
Over simplification of the sport
�
No differentiation between prestige of World Archery
Championships, World Archery Youth Championships and the Olympic Games
� FITA Round is a huge part of the history of target archery
Whether or not the "FITA Round" is eliminated, the 144-arrow round (at any distance) stands to be renamed, as there is a motion before the Congress which will change the name of the round to the "1440 Round" - or "Double 1440 Round." The proposed change in terminology is meant to bring the names of the rounds in line with the correct and current name of the International Governing Body's name: the World Archery Federation.
In addition, the recent success of the Set System for recurve individual elimination matches has spurred a motion to establish Set Match play as the standard for all recurve elimination matches. This would mean the Set System would also be used for team and mixed team elimination matches, instead of cumulative scoring.
PROS:
�
Clearly
diversifies recurve competition from compound
�
Allows media
and inexperienced spectators a format that is easy to
�
Possibility of
shorter matches as a match can be resolved in three or four sets instead of
always needing five.
� Favors the less consistent shooter; one bad shot does not determine an entire match
CONS:
� Does not necessarily favor the more consistent shooter
With respect to Para-Archery, based upon requests from
athletes represented by the Para-Archery Committee, along with the Constitution
and Rules Committee, there is a motion to change the categories for
Para-Archery to Open Recurve, Open Compound and Open W1 for Men and Women. Open
means that the classifications for Standing and W2 would be combined to create
a more universal competition at major events. The general consensus seems to
agree, "the merge of standing and W2 will give a more competitive and universal
competition at Paralympics and major events. Also the creation of an open W1 event
will permit the more severe[ly] disabled to have a good and appropriate
competition."
Why does it matter to me?
These propositions are all submitted with the main intention of raising archery to a higher and more unified standard of competition. While on an international level, these changes would affect many World Archery events and even potentially the Olympic Games, they could also lead to eventual changes within national events. As World Archery member associations tend to reflect the procedures and standards of their International Governing Body, could this mean the end of recurve team cumulative match scoring? Will USA Archery embrace the single-distance round instead of the four-distance FITA?
How can I learn more?
The World Archery Congress
will actually be available to follow on a live stream via Archery TV here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvPStSJPOhY. More information about the congress and motions
on the table can be found on World Archery's page here: http://www.worldarchery.org/en-us/home/organisation/congress/2013belekantalya(tur).aspx.
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