If you ask any aspiring young archer on a shooting line what the one thing they are aiming for in their career is, you would probably find that, for most of them, it would be to shoot at an Olympic Games.
What adds the glamour to the biggest event in the sporting calendar is its rarity – held only once every four years – making its size and time so difficult to prepare for.
But what is one thing that can give those young archers a chance to get a slight feel of the Olympic Games?
That’s right… the Youth Olympic Games.
While it may not be on the same scale as the senior Olympic Games, Dakar 2026 will still give that big-event feel to the 64 archers heading to the Senegalese capital, with 2700 athletes competing in 25 sports, including archery.
Dakar is the fourth edition of the Youth Olympic Games, following Singapore 2010, Nanjing 2014 and Buenos Aires 2018. The event was originally scheduled to take place in 2022 but was postponed to this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unlike the (senior) LA28 Olympic Games, where compound archery is set to make its Olympic debut, Dakar will feature only recurve competition at Abdoulaye Wade Stadium, with under-18 men’s and women’s individual events, as well as a mixed team competition.
There is no other team event, as nations could be awarded a maximum of two quota places. The 64 athlete quota places were awarded through an open ranking system, with archers required to achieve a minimum qualification score.
