NAPOLI, 13 July – The Republic of Korea finished on top of the archery medal table at Napoli 2019 with four gold, two silver and two bronze medals. The Recurve team and individual finals were held on Saturday at the beautiful Caserta Palace, an 18th-century former royal residence.

 

The women’s recurve team event was won by Korea, with Russia and Ukraine following in silver and bronze.

 

Ukraine’s Iryna Khochyna and Polina Rodionova, the bronze medallists were delighted with their performance.

 

“This is my first and last Universiade. I just feel very happy with our result and I enjoyed this competition,” said Polina, who started archery in 2004 and made her international debut in 2006.

For Misun Choi of Korea (above), on the other hand, it was a third Universiade experience. The gold medallist said, “We are satisfied with our results and we really enjoyed the competition.”

 

“We loved everything about Napoli,” she added. “This was my first time here. The views of mountains and sea are very beautiful. We enjoyed the culture of Naples.”

 

In the men’s recurve team competition, Russia’s Erdem Tsydypov and Beligto Tsynguev beat Chinese Taipei to win gold.

 

“I started archery when I was quite young,” 22-year-old Tsydypov told FISU later. “My father is a coach of archery, so he trained me to be an archer. After this result, we both are very satisfied”

 

In the mixed team event, it was Chinese Taipei who triumphed, beating Japan 5-3 for the last gold medal of team competition. Chia-Mao Peng and Chun-Heng Wei said it was an honour to represent Chinese Taipei and finish on top of the podium.

 

“Napoli 2019 is my last Universiade,” said Wei (right) ruefully. “So, we enjoyed it to the fullest. This place is something else.”

 

“We don’t worry about our opponents,” Wei said about the competition. “We just hoped to do our best. We’re just always happy to take part in archery.”

 

Chun-Heng Wei was part of the team that won the recurve mixed team silver at Gwangju 2015 as well as the men’s team silver at Taipei 2017.

 

“In Napoli, I tried my best in every competition because this is my last Universiade. I really didn’t want to leave with any regrets,” he added.

 

Wei’s teammate, Chia-Mao Peng, who had won the women’s team silver at Taipei 2017, said “This is my first gold medal in a Universiade. I feel so happy with that. I started learning archery in the third grade of elementary school. I think it is such a personal sport, so different from my daily life.”

 

“I hope I can take part in the next Universiade in Chengdu (2021). I want to show I am capable of more.”

The recurve men's team medallists 

Results:

Recurve Women’s Team:

Gold: Korea

Silver: Russia

Bronze: Ukraine

 

Recurve Men’s Team:

Gold: Russia

Silver: Chinese Taipei

Bronze: USA

 

Recurve Mixed Team:

Gold: Chinese Taipei

Silver: Japan

Bronze: Ukraine

 

Recurve Women:

Gold: KANG Chae Young (KOR）

Silver: CHOI Misun（KOR）

Bronze: PENG Chia-Mao（TPE）

 

Recurve Men:

Gold: LEE Woo Seok（KOR）

Silver: TSYDYPOV Erdem（RUS）

Bronze: ISHII Yuta（JPN）

 

Korea, Russia, Turkey also win golds at Caserta palace

CASERTA, Italy – It was a good day for teens, as the compound archery medals were decided at the Summer Universiade 2019 on Friday, with Estonian siblings Lisell and Robin Jaatma and Mexico's Andrea Becerra springing big surprises.

 

The Lisells stunned favourites Chen Chieh-Lun and Chen Yi-Hsuan of Chinese Taipei in the mixed team event in a dramatic encounter than ended in a shootoff. Shooting over 50 metres in the spectacular setting of the Royal Palace of Caserta, which used to be the residence of the kings of Naples, the Estonians had built up a two-point lead by the half-way stage.

  

The Chinese Taipei duo then dug deep and came back with some formidable accuracy, forcing Robin Jaatma to get a 10 from the last arrow of regulation archery to keep the contest alive. It was initially marked as a nine, but the arrow clipped the line and the judges upped the score.

 

The Estonians hit a perfect 20 in the ensuing shootoff to claim victory, with Lisell Jaatma visibly moved by what she had achieved with her brother.

 

“I'm really happy,” said Robin Jaatma. “It was not easy for us. In fact, it was really hard. Our second match against Turkey was especially difficult. But we did our best and we won.

 

“It (the venue) was really cool. It was the coolest place I've ever shot in.”

 

Lisell Jaatma confessed she was “so nervous” even though she didn't show it.

 

“I'm really happy, because I didn't do so well in the individual,” she added. “This is a big competition and we were shooting against some really great archers. So it feels very good to win it.”

 

In the bronze medal match, the top-seeded Korean pairing of So Chaewon and Kim Jongho recovered from a shaky start to make light work of Kazakhstan, triumphing 149-140.

 

Mexico’s Andrea Becerra, 18, showed nerves of steel to defeat South Korea's So Chaewon, the world number eight, 146-141 in the women's individual compound event.

 

The Guadalajara University student capitalized on a couple of uncharacteristic mistakes by the Korean in the third end to take command. She sealed the win with a perfect 30 in the final end.

 

“Oh my God, it feels amazing,” she said. “I think it's the first gold medal for us as a team here at this event (archery).

 

“I'm very excited. This has never happened to me before at an international event, so I'm really very excited. It was nerve-racking for me.”

 

Turkey's Yesim Bostan, the world number four, beat Kazakhstan's Diana Makarchuk 145-142 to claim bronze.

 

So Chaewon still had a gold to celebrate though, as she helped South Korea defend the women's compound team title that they won two years ago in Taipei, edging Turkey 156-154 in a high quality match.

 

The Turkish pair of Bostan and Gizem Elmaagacli had the better of the early stages. But Korea's Chaewon and Kim Yunhee took advantage of some dropped points during the third end to seize the initiative and control proceedings from then on.

 

Chinese Taipei were too good for Russia in the bronze-medal match, prevailing 154-149.  

 

The Turkish duo of Suleyman Araz and Muhammed Yetim pipped Iranians Kiarash Farzan and Mohammadsaleh Palizban in the men's team event. After four ends of high-quality archery, the score was tied at 156 points a piece, forcing a shootoff. Both teams scored 19, but Turkey got the gold thanks to Yetim's shot on the x ring being the closest to the middle.

 

Mexico won the bronze medal, dropping just two points in a 158-150 victory over the United States.

Royal Caserta Palace: the sunning setting of the Archery finals at Napoli 2019There were more surprises in the men's individual event when South Korea's Kim Jongho, who was aiming for his third consecutive Universiade title, completely missed the target twice as he lost his semi-final to Turkey's Yetim.

 

Kim Jongho recovered to beat Poland's Lukasz Przybylsk and win bronze. Russian's Anton Bulaev beat Yetim in a shootoff to take gold after the match ended 147 a piece.

 

The archery competition at the Summer Universiade concludes on Saturday with the recurve finals.

 

Paul Virgo @ ANSA

 

Team events featuring only two athletes are a new and unique addition to the Universiade

 

NAPOLI, 11 July - Seven different countries will be represented across the six team and mixed team gold medal matches as the unique two-athlete team competition at Napoli 2019 produced a raft of surprise results.

 

Shock winners emerged early as Switzerland upset the recurve men’s top seed, Korea, in the first round.

Florian and Adrian Faber lost the first set to Lee Woo Seok and Nam Yubin, 35-38, but drew level after the second, 38-37. A pair of 36-point sets was enough to beat the Korean pair’s 36 and 35.

 

“We always believed in our strength and I guess today was one of those days. We had really lots of fun and it means a lot for us that all the work we put in is showing on the field,” said Florian. “This new event was amazing. It also made it special that it was a brother thing.”

 

The Swiss team would eventually lose to Russia in the semifinals but their results were indicative of a competition that did not go to form.

 

This Universiade’s two-athlete team events were introduced to allow more nations to participate. The format mirrors that of the mixed team. Team results from Napoli will not count for the world ranking.

 

“It was different from the normal team. The whole thing was more calming and free because you had more space,” said Florian. “I also think it can be easier for smaller countries to get competitive. See us!

 

No recurve men’s team from Switzerland has ever made a medal match at an international event before.

 

It’s a well-known adage that a team is only as strong as its weakest member, usually the third member in an archery squad. This two-athlete format means smaller nations need to find one less competitive archer from the student ranks to build a contender.

 

Korea’s recurve women’s team – Kang Chae Young and Choi Misun – and compound women’s team were predictably strong.

 

But the Korean recurve mixed team, compound men’s team and compound mixed team all suffered upsets as well. The results will show a sharp drop in titles for the world-leading squad after taking nine of the 10 available gold medals at the last Universaide in 2017.

 

Women’s world number one Kang Chae Young and men’s number two Lee Woo Seok were caught out in a poor quarterfinal. The presumptive favourites shot sets of 34, 33 and 37 points and lost to Ukraine, 5-1.

 

Reigning world champion compound pair Kim Jongho and So Chaewon were consistently the highest scorers during the eliminations. They shot a new Universiade record, shooting 159 out of a possible 160 points in the second round.

 

But their 16-arrow match total dipped to an event-low of 156 points in the semifinals. Chinese Taipei’s Chen Yi-Hsuan and Chen Chieh-Lun matched the Korean duo’s score, shooting a third consecutive match of 156, and then won the tiebreak.

 

Both Korea and Chinese Taipei shot perfect 20-point shoot-offs but the Taipei team had an arrow closer to the middle.

 

Chinese Taipei, Estonia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Iran, Mexico, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine and the USA will all contest a bronze or gold medal in at least one team event at the 2019 Universiade.

 

Team Finalists

• Recurve men: Russia/Chinese Taipei

• Recurve women: Korea/Russia

• Recurve mixed: Japan/Chinese Taipei

• Compound men: Iran/Turkey

• Compound women: Korea/Turkey

• Compound mixed: Chinese Taipei/Estonia

 

Courtesy: Chris Wells @ World Archery

 

Compound finals take place on Friday 12 July, recurve finals on Saturday 13 July

 

 

NAPOLI, 10 July - Top seeds Kim Jongho, Yesim Bostan, Lee Woo Seok and Kang Chae Young won all their elimination matches and have advanced to the semifinals at Napoli 2019. 

 

Kim Jongho and Kang Chae Young are defending champions, with the former shooting for his third consecutive Universiade title at this event.

 

“It’s not that I’m greedy for a third gold medal but, if I work hard, I think I can get a good result here,” said Jongho.

 

“It was good to shoot well today even though it was windy. I think I can maintain this form for the rest of the tournament.”

 

The world number five won matches against Tsui Chun Kit, Camille Dufour in a shoot-off and then Christian Beyers De Klerk with a perfect 150 points. That last match, 150 3X, was ratified as a new Universiade record.

 

Jongho recently took third at the 2019 Hyundai World Archery Championships by shooting a perfect 150-point match to beat Braden Gellenthien in the bronze medal match.

 

Joining the 24-year-old in the compound men’s final four are Muhammed Yetim, Anton Bulaev and Lukasz Przybylski.

 

Top compound woman’s seed Yesim Bostan, third-ranked So Chaewon and number-four-seed Andrea Becerra all made the semifinals. Second-ranked Danelle Wentzel was upset by Kazakhstan’s Diana Makarchuk in the third round. Makarchuk is the fourth semifinalist.

 

Lee Woo Seok, Wei Chun-Heng, Yuta Ishii and Erdem Tsydypov are the recurve men’s final four.

 

Kang Chae Young, Peng Chia-Mao, Valeria Mylnikova and Choi Misun will shoot in the recurve women’s semifinals.

 

Courtesy: Chris Wells @ World Archery

 

Over 200 student-athletes are competing in the Archery competition at the 2019 Universiade

 

NAPOLI, 9 July - Lee Woo Seok, Kang Chae Young, Kim Jongho and Yesim Bostan finished top of the ranking rounds at the Napoli 2019 Summer Universiade as Korean athletes seeded first in eight of the 10 individual and team events.

 

Bostan and Danelle Wentzel tied for the high score over compound women’s qualification with 701 points – a new Universiade record – but the Turkish world number four took the top seed because she shot 27 Xs to Danelle’s 24.

 

“I’m happy with my results but I didn’t know it would be a record. I’m really happy about that. It was windy but it wasn’t a problem,” said Bostan. “This is my third Universiade. My goal at every competition is to the win the gold medal and it is the same here.”

 

Kim beat his own Universiade record of 705 points with 716 for the 72-arrow 50-metre ranking round. He and Kang Chae Young arrived in Napoli as defending champions from Taipei in 2017. Jongho also won the compound men’s competition at the Universiade in Gwangju in 2015.

 

World record holder and world number one Chae Young led all recurve women in Napoli with 676 points. Her Korean teammate Choi Misun seeded second on 669.Lee Woo Seok’s 672 was top of the recurve men’s field by six points.

 

Korea ranked first in five of the six team events. Mexico’s Miguel Becerra and Rodolfo Gonzalez prevented the sweep by seeding top as a compound men’s team.The team competition at the 2019 Summer Universiade is unique in that each team only consists of two athletes rather than the standard three. Eliminations will mirror the format of the mixed team event.

 

There are seven athletes ranked in the top 10 in the world competing in Napoli. The archery competitions at the Summer Universiade continue till 13 July.

 

Courtesy: Chris Wells @ World Archery

 

 

Preview, 29 June

Chaeyoung Kang (L) and Wooseok LeeTwo hundred and two archers will be lining up, aiming for gold in the archery competition of the Napoli 2019 Summer Universiade. Archery runs from 9-13 July, with finals taking place in the grandest of all backdrops – Reggia di Caserta, or the Royal Palace of Caserta. The unique setting, along with the quality of the field will ensure that archery at this Summer Universiade will indeed be a marquee event.

 

Training sessions start 4 July onwards at Stadio Partenio, a multi-purpose stadium in Avellino, where most of the ranking and elimination rounds will also be held. All eyes will surely be on the Korean squad that is led by two world number ones. The Korean archery team is always traditionally strong in Recurve and this time will be no different, as three individual gold medallists from the 2019 Archery World Cup stage 2 will be in Napoli: Wooseok Lee, Chaeyoung Kang and Misun Choi.

 

“I am really looking forward to the Recurve Mixed Team events because my partner Chaeyoung is in great form, and is a top-ranked player,” says Wooseok Lee. “Also, I have great expectations from Yubin Nam to have good results in Recurve Men’s Team events.”

 

Chaeyoung Kang (left) seems to be in an equally positive frame of mind, more so because of her last experience at the Universiade in Taipei in 2017.

 

“I was a double gold medallist!” she says happily. “It was more than I expected. But now, I would like to win all gold medals in each event. I am most excited about the Recurve Women’s Team event because it will be my third time to partner Misun Choi.”

 

All three champion archers agree that Chinese Taipei will be their greatest competition. “The Taiwanese Archery Team is one of our strongest competitors, but, we will try our best to win!”

 

There are also two notable Koreans in the fray in Compound, Jongho Kim and Chaewon So. Chaewon hopes to do one better than Taipei 2017.

 

“I would like to do better than I did at the Taipei 2017 Universiade, in which I won the bronze medal in the Compound Individual,” she says. “I had failed to qualify for the finals at that time due to a small mistake. I have prepared myself well this time not to make the same mistake again.”

 

The Koreans have thrown down the gauntlet. The question is: who will rise to the challenge? All competition results and updates can be found on the Napoli 2019 official website and all semifinals and finals will be streamed live on FISU.TV.

 

The Napoli 2019 Summer Universiade will get underway on the evening of 3 July, with a grand Opening Ceremony directed by famed producer Marco Balich.

  

 

All picture credits: World Archery