| I can only assume historically, the earliest | | | | archers in history were the Mongols. Genghis |
| man must have faced a dilemma when he went | | | | Khan was the leader of the Mongols who were |
| off to hunt for food. The wild animals were | | | | expert horsemen who could stand high in the |
| big, and if you got too close, they could | | | | stirrups and shoot arrows in all directions. |
| devour you before you got the chance to kill | | | | Maybe the most recognized name in archery is |
| them. There were no guns at this point, so | | | | William Tell. Legend has it that William |
| man probably had to put himself in harm's way | | | | refused to bow in the presence of authority, |
| more times then not, just to increase his | | | | so he was ordered to shoot an apple off of |
| chances of catching his prey. I can assume | | | | his son's head.Bows were still being used in |
| at this point and time, man was thinking of | | | | battles, until the late 1500s. In 1520 AD |
| ways to increase his chances of catching his | | | | the musket was invented. English archers |
| prey, while trying to reduce the potential | | | | were last used in battle in 1644 AD. With |
| physical harm to himself. Maybe this is when | | | | the invention of the firearm, it became |
| the idea of the spear began to form in man's | | | | apparent that there was no longer any need |
| mind.The spear, in its most basic form, was a | | | | for archers on the battlefield.Though no |
| stick that was sharpened at the end. Soon | | | | longer used for battles, archery skill |
| after the spear, came the bow. The bow was a | | | | contests became popular in England, toward |
| device used to hurl the spear distances | | | | the end of the 1600s. In the US archery was |
| greater then man could throw with his arm. | | | | basically a Native American activity until |
| The device used in conjunction with the bow, | | | | 1828, when the United Bowmen of Philadelphia |
| would later become known as an arrow. Some | | | | was formed. The National Archery Association |
| of the oldest arrowheads were found in | | | | was established in 1879, and the first |
| Africa, and were dated before 25,000 B.C. | | | | national tournament was held that year in |
| The first composite bow was created by the | | | | Chicago. Archery was actually a competition |
| Egyptians; this occurred sometime around 2800 | | | | in the second modern Olympic Games in 1900. |
| B.C.For obvious reasons, the bow and arrow | | | | Unfortunately, because so many countries had |
| became a great tool for hunting food. And | | | | different rules on how they judged the sport; |
| over time man even found ways to improve the | | | | the Olympics dropped archery as a competition |
| accuracy of his shooting; he did this by | | | | after 1920. The FITA was formed in 1931, in |
| adding feathers to his arrows. The bow and | | | | Paris. What this organization did was to |
| arrow also became a great tool for fighting. | | | | create standardized rules, for archery in |
| Archery was a weapon for many of the early | | | | international competition. By 1972, enough |
| armies. The Egyptians used archers on the | | | | countries had affiliated themselves with |
| back of chariots, they were highly skilled, | | | | FITA, that it helped archery to be restored |
| and could easily outflank an enemy army with | | | | as an Olympic event. |
| devastating effect. Probably the most famous | | | | |