The higher the archer's level, the tighter and better centred the group

9 studies · 155 archers measured

Each circle is a study: its position gives the year, its row whether it is for, against or context, its size how many participants it measured. Light circles are studies on other populations or without archers.

Group contour archer by archer at 18 metres: from 7.76 to 9.96 cm in the three Olympic archers, from 11.88 to 26.73 in the six national-level archers

Three archers who had competed at the Olympic Games

Archer 1

7.76

Archer 2

9.21

Archer 3

9.96

Six Belgian national-level archers

Archer 4

11.88

Archer 5

25.38

Archer 6

14.68

Archer 7

26.73

Archer 8

14.3

Archer 9

14.41

centimetres, contour of the three impacts in an end

Each bar is one archer: the mean contour of the three impacts in each end, in centimetres, over six ends of three arrows shot indoors at 18 metres. The whiskers are the standard deviation across the six ends, as given in table 8 of the study. The shorter the bar, the tighter the group. On average the contour is 8.98 cm for the three Olympic archers and 17.90 for the six national-level archers, averages we calculated from the table. The study also measured six beginners with a few months' experience, but their values appear only in a chart and are left out here. Nine archers in all and a descriptive measurement: the table reports no test between the groups on this measure. Data from: Clarys et al. 1990.

The numbers in the figure

Study	Group	Value (centimetres, contour of the three impacts in an end)	Interval
Three archers who had competed at the Olympic Games	Archer 1	7.76	± 1.4 (mean ± standard deviation)
Three archers who had competed at the Olympic Games	Archer 2	9.21	± 1.7 (mean ± standard deviation)
Three archers who had competed at the Olympic Games	Archer 3	9.96	± 3.4 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 4	11.88	± 4.5 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 5	25.38	± 11.6 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 6	14.68	± 4.3 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 7	26.73	± 10.5 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 8	14.3	± 7.8 (mean ± standard deviation)
Six Belgian national-level archers	Archer 9	14.41	± 4.6 (mean ± standard deviation)

The spread of impacts on the two axes at three levels: the beginners' standard deviations are five to seven times those of the high-level archers

High level

x axisn = 9

2.2

y axisn = 9

1.94

Middle level

x axisn = 13

5.8

y axisn = 13

4.26

Beginners

x axisn = 7

11.8

y axisn = 7

14.34

standard deviation, unit not stated in the abstract

Each bar is the standard deviation of the impacts on one axis of the target face, for 29 recurve archers shooting 72 arrows each at 18 metres. The bars have no whiskers because they are already a measure of spread; the abstract writes them next to the means with a ± sign and calls them standard deviations, and here they are rounded, while the abstract gives them to four decimal places. The abstract does not give the unit of measurement, does not say which axis is horizontal and does not say whether the deviations are calculated over all the group's arrows together or archer by archer. It says it compared the mean values of the impacts between the two axes and finds a significant difference only in the beginners (p < 0.002); it does not say whether that comparison also covers the spread. The mean impacts are left out: they describe centring, and there the middle level is the most off-centre of the three groups. It is a congress abstract. Data from: Ertan 2014.

The numbers in the figure

Study	Group	Value (standard deviation, unit not stated in the abstract)	n
High level	x axis	2.2	9
High level	y axis	1.94	9
Middle level	x axis	5.8	13
Middle level	y axis	4.26	13
Beginners	x axis	11.8	7
Beginners	y axis	14.34	7

Seven independent samples all point the same way, and none the other. At eighteen metres the group outline of three Olympic archers runs from 7.8 to 10 cm, that of six national-level archers from 11.9 to 26.7, about twice as large on average. Over seventy-two arrows each, again at eighteen metres, the spread of beginners' impacts is five to seven times that of high-level archers, whose mean impact also sits closest to the centre; centring does not fall in step with level, though, because the middle group is the most off-centre of the three. At thirty metres ten Olympic-level archers are more precise than ten beginners while taking the same time per shot. The same thing shows inside a single national squad, read on the score alone: over ninety arrows the best archer shot neither a six nor a seven, the worst shot fourteen sevens and a six, and between national-squad and provincial-squad archers the gap is 8.7 against 6.8 points per arrow, with very different consistency. In competition, on photographs of the target faces at two major events in 2013, the top twenty men's compound archers lose 0.30 points over 36 arrows to an off-centre group, against 1.35 for their division as a whole. What keeps the status low is the design: these are all cross-sectional comparisons between different groups, two of the studies are congress abstracts, one with no figures and the other with no units, and in competition the better centring of the leading archers shows clearly only in men's compound.

Also phrased as: "better archers group tighter"; "tight group and level"; "arrow spread and level"; "experts and beginners on the target face"; "how tightly a national-squad archer groups"

In practice

An archer's level is read off the target, a small group in the gold, and with beginners the first thing you look at is how scattered the arrows are.

Evidence

1990
For Archers Published later

3 Olympic and 6 national-level Belgian archers, six ends of three arrows at eighteen metres: the mean group outline is 7.76, 9.21 and 9.96 cm in the Olympic archers, while in the national-level ones it runs from 11.88 to 26.73. On average the better archers' group is about half the size of the others'. A descriptive measurement, nine archers in all.

Muscular Activity of Different Shooting Distances, Different Release Techniques, and Different Performance Levels, with and without Stabilizers, in Target Archery · J.P. Clarys, J. Cabri, E. Bollens, R. Sleeckx, J. Taeymans, M. Vermeiren, et al.
2012
For Archers Published later

Arrow positions of the top four archers in the finals of World Cups, World Championships and Olympic Games from 2006 to 2011: in recurve the differences in accuracy and precision between first and second place are statistically significant, while in compound the finalists are more closely matched. It is a congress abstract and reports no values.

Technical factors utilised by elite archers: towards setting an agenda for archery · Andrew J. Callaway, Shelley Broomfield
2012
Context Archers Published later

The same abstract notes something the step in level does not explain: in international finals the bronze-medal winner generally performs better, in that match, than the archer who loses the gold-medal final. The description comes with no figures, but it says that between archers who are very close in level the result does not follow group width.

Technical factors utilised by elite archers: towards setting an agenda for archery · Andrew J. Callaway, Shelley Broomfield
2014
For Archers Published later

29 Turkish recurve archers across three levels, seventy-two arrows at eighteen metres each: the high-level impacts have means x = -0.79 (standard deviation 2.20) and y = -1.24 (1.94), the middle level x = -4.19 (5.80) and y = 1.03 (4.26), the beginners x = 1.56 (11.80) and y = 1.46 (14.34), with nine, thirteen and seven archers per group. The high-level group is both the tightest and the best centred, while the beginners' mean is closer to the centre than the middle level's, which is the most off-centre. The abstract does not give the unit of measurement.

Hit distribution patterns in recurve archery · H. Ertan
2014
For Archers Published later

The same sample, read as a ratio between spreads: that of the beginners is five to seven times that of the high-level archers (standard deviations of 11.80 on x and 14.34 on y against 2.20 and 1.94), and in the beginners it is larger vertically than horizontally, the only statistically significant difference between the axes (p < 0.002). The abstract does not give the unit of measurement.

Hit distribution patterns in recurve archery · H. Ertan
2014
Context Archers Published later

18 archers of mixed level, two hundred arrows scored at eighteen metres: 48.5 per cent land in the gold, 38.5 in the red and 13 in the blue or further out. It gives a point of reference on a group that is not split by level, but it does not compare levels.

Assessment of target performance in archery · İpek Eroglu Kolayis, Murat Çilli, Hayri Ertan, J. Axel Knicker
2017
For Archers Published later

10 Olympic-level archers from the British squad and 10 beginners from a university club, twenty-four arrows at thirty metres: the radial error is clearly lower in the Olympic archers, F(1,20) = 18.42, p = 0.001, partial eta squared 0.55, and the score is higher too, F = 12.38, p = 0.003, while the duration of the shot does not differ (p = 0.153).

Exploring the quiet eye in archery using field- and laboratory-based tasks · Claudia C. Gonzalez, Joe Causer, Michael J. Grey, Glyn W. Humphreys, R. Chris Miall, A. Mark Williams
2018
For Archers Published later

6 recurve archers from a national squad, ninety arrows at eighteen metres on the 40 cm face: the best finishes at 8.94 points per arrow (standard deviation 0.41) with no six and no seven, the worst at 8.22 (0.83) with one six and fourteen sevens, and the mode is nine in the top four and eight in the two least precise. Level shows in the tail of the worst shots.

The Uncontrolled Manifold Concept Reveals That the Structure of Postural Control in Recurve Archery Shooting Is Related to Accuracy · Ben Serrien, Elout Witterzeel, Jean-Pierre Baeyens
2020
For Archers Published later

Photographs of every target face at the Shanghai World Cup and the World Championships in 2013, after the 50 m and 30 m distances, with the points lost to off-centre groups recalculated through a model: archers centred their groups to within about 60 per cent of the group's size, and the elite men's compound archers did markedly better. In Shanghai the top twenty men's compound archers lost on average 0.30 points over 36 arrows against 1.35 for their division as a whole, and the top ten one point between them. The best archers centre better, but the figure applies to men's compound, and the losses are probably underestimated because archers were correcting their sights during the distance.

The impact of off-centred groups on an archer’s score · James L Park
2021
Context Archers Published later

42 recurve archers aged nine to twelve with at least one year's licence, thirty arrows at eighteen metres out of a maximum of three hundred: the boys total 221.71 (standard deviation 56.42) and the girls 242.00 (30.52), with d = -0.45 and p = 0.265. The averages are close and the boys' spread is almost twice as large. It shows how much scores vary at that age, but it compares the sexes, not levels.

The relationship between shooting performance and respiratory muscle strength in archers aged 9-12 · Ozgur Bostanci, Menderes Kabadayi, Muhammet Hakan Mayda, Ali Kerim Yilmaz, Coskun Yilmaz
2022
For Archers Published later

16 archers from the Chinese national squad and 15 from the Beijing squad, Olympic recurve at seventy metres: mean score per arrow 8.7 (standard deviation 0.5) against 6.8 (1.4), p = 3.8 by ten to the minus five, with individual values from 7.7 to 9.4 in the national squad and from 2.4 to 8.2 in the provincial one. Age and sex distribution do not differ; years of training do, 8.1 against 4.3.

Research on Top Archer's EEG Microstates and Source Analysis in Different States · Feng Gu, Anmin Gong, Yi Qu, Hui Xiao, Jin Wu, Wenya Nan, et al.

Status history

1990 Reported The first measurement in the bibliography does not look at the score but at the outline of the group: at eighteen metres that of three Olympic archers runs from 7.8 to 10 cm, that of six national-level archers from 11.9 to 26.7, so the better archers' group is about half the size on average. Nine archers in all and a descriptive measurement, so reported.
2012 Reported The comparison reaches the highest level there is: in the international finals of six years of competition the recurve winner shoots more accurately and more precisely than the runner-up. A second sample pointing the same way, but it is a congress abstract with no figures, and the status holds.
2014 Reported The size of the gap is now measured: twenty-nine recurve archers across three levels, seventy-two arrows at eighteen metres each. The high-level archers have the mean impact closest to the centre and standard deviations of around 2, the beginners deviations of 12 to 14, five to seven times as much, and they are more scattered vertically than horizontally; the middle group, though, is the most off-centre, and the abstract does not give the unit of measurement. A third independent sample and no contrary study, but this too is a congress abstract and the comparison is between different groups: reported.
2017 Reported Ten Olympic-level archers and ten beginners measured over twenty-four arrows at thirty metres: the Olympic archers are more precise while taking the same time per shot, so the gap is not a matter of hurrying. It is a fourth sample pointing the same way, with ten archers per group, and the status holds.
2018 Reported The same thing shows inside a single national squad, read on the score rather than on coordinates: over ninety arrows at eighteen metres the best archer shot neither a six nor a seven, the worst shot fourteen sevens and one six, and the spread grows as the average falls. Level shows in the tail of the worst shots more than in the average, but we are still inside a cross-sectional comparison.
2020 Reported Photographs of the target faces at two major competitions in 2013, reread through a model, add centring measured in competition: archers centre their group to within about 60 per cent of its size, and in men's compound the top twenty lose 0.30 points over 36 arrows to off-centre groups against 1.35 on average. It is the sixth sample pointing the same way and none points the other, but this too is a comparison between different archers at the same competition: the status stays reported.
2022 Reported A seventh independent sample confirms it, and adds consistency: between archers of the Chinese national squad and archers of a provincial squad it is not only the average per arrow that changes, 8.7 against 6.8, but also the spread, with standard deviations of 0.5 against 1.4. These are still comparisons between different groups, so the status does not go beyond reported.

Research lines

Studies describe groups of archers, and your own numbers show how far the finding applies to your shooting.

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Cite

APA

Campagna, M. (2026). The higher the archer's level, the tighter and better centred the group (Version 2). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/competition/level-tighter-centred-group

BibTeX

@misc{campagna2026_livellogruppostrettocentrato,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {The higher the archer's level, the tighter and better centred the group},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/competition/level-tighter-centred-group},
  note = {Version 2; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

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