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Higher-level archers shoot a few pounds more than the others

4 studies · 147 archers measured

ForContextAgainst201820202022202420262018, for, n = 622018, against, n = 302024, for, n = 282024, context, n = 282019, for, n = 27
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.

Mean draw weight by level in four samples: in three the top group shoots a few pounds more, in the Japanese sample it does not

Each bar is a group mean and the whiskers are the standard deviation each study reports. Only two studies test the difference: in the Japanese sample the comparisons between groups do not find one (p between 0.82 and 0.97 across the three pairwise comparisons), in the 2018 sample one is found (p = 0.003), but there the draw weights are self-reported and an indoor championship is compared with an outdoor one. The Turkish and Chinese studies do not run a test, and the Chinese one appears in a venue flagged as questionable. In the Turkish study's table the values are headed in kilograms, but they are plausible only in pounds and are read that way here. The Japanese values come from table 1 of the online first version, which calls draw weight "bow strength" and gives it in pounds. In the Turkish and Chinese samples the top group also has more years of practice. In 2018 the difference in years is not significant (p = 0.061), but the European championships group trained almost twice as many times a week. Data from: Shinohara and Urabe 2018, Niestroj et al. 2018, Simsek et al. 2019 and Zhang and Lin 2024.
The numbers in the figure
StudyGroupValue (pounds)Intervaln
Shinohara and Urabe 2018, 30 Japanese archers, groups by score at 70 metres, against the claimBeginners42.1± 1.7 (mean ± standard deviation)10
Shinohara and Urabe 2018, 30 Japanese archers, groups by score at 70 metres, against the claimPre-elite42.6± 1.6 (mean ± standard deviation)10
Shinohara and Urabe 2018, 30 Japanese archers, groups by score at 70 metres, against the claimElite42.4± 1.8 (mean ± standard deviation)10
Niestroj et al. 2018, 62 recurve archers, self-reported draw weight, for the claimGerman national indoor championship38.5± 4.8 (mean ± standard deviation)40
Niestroj et al. 2018, 62 recurve archers, self-reported draw weight, for the claimEuropean outdoor championships42.9± 5.9 (mean ± standard deviation)22
Simsek et al. 2019, Turkish study, 27 recurve archers, groups by FITA score, for the claimBeginners34.8± 2.8 (mean ± standard deviation)9
Simsek et al. 2019, Turkish study, 27 recurve archers, groups by FITA score, for the claimIntermediate35.5± 3.9 (mean ± standard deviation)9
Simsek et al. 2019, Turkish study, 27 recurve archers, groups by FITA score, for the claimElite44± 1.4 (mean ± standard deviation)9
Zhang and Lin 2024, 28 Chinese national and provincial team archers, for the claimNational second class42.3± 4.2 (mean ± standard deviation)8
Zhang and Lin 2024, 28 Chinese national and provincial team archers, for the claimNational first class42.1± 5.2 (mean ± standard deviation)12
Zhang and Lin 2024, 28 Chinese national and provincial team archers, for the claimInternational masters46.3± 4.8 (mean ± standard deviation)8

Four samples, and they do not point the same way. In 62 recurve archers, those at the European outdoor championships declared 42.9 lb on average and those at a German national indoor championship 38.5, a difference of about four and a half pounds, and a significant one (p = 0.003); in 27 recurve archers split into three levels by FITA score the elite shot 44.0 lb against 34.8 and 35.5 for the beginners and the intermediate group, with no test; in 28 Chinese archers the eight on the national team shot 46.3 lb against 42.1 and 42.3 for the two provincial groups, but the difference is not tested, the standard deviations are around five pounds and the study appears in a questionable venue. In 30 Japanese archers split into three groups of ten by score at 70 metres, on the other hand, bow draw weight does not separate the levels. Even where the difference exists, level does not travel alone: the European archers trained almost twice as many times a week and shot outdoors, while the elite archers of the 2019 sample and the Chinese national team archers had more years of practice, and the latter were also a few years older. These are cross-sectional studies, in the European sample at least the draw weights are self-reported, and nobody has followed archers as they move up a level to see whether the pounds come before or after.

Also phrased as: "elite archers' draw weight"; "more pounds to shoot better"; "draw weight and level"; "how many pounds do champions shoot"

In practice

It is taken for granted that moving up a level means moving up in pounds, and that an elite archer shoots a few pounds more than a club archer.

Evidence

  • 2018
    Against Archers Published later

    30 male Japanese archers split into three groups of ten by score over 72 arrows at 70 m (633.0, 593.0 and 557.5 on average): on analysis of variance height, body mass, body mass index and bow draw weight do not differ between the groups, while age, score and years of practice do.

    Analysis of Muscular Activity in Archery: A Comparison of Skill Level · Hiroshi Shinohara, Yukio Urabe

  • 2018
    For Archers Published later

    62 recurve archers from eight nations, 40 from a German national indoor championship and 22 from the 2012 European outdoor championships, retrospective injury questionnaire: declared draw weight 38.5 lb (17.4 kg, standard deviation 4.8 lb) in the national group and 42.9 (19.5 kg, standard deviation 5.9) at the Europeans, p = 0.003. The European archers trained 5.1 times a week against 2.8 and tended to have more years of practice (15.7 against 11.8, p = 0.061).

    Acute and Overuse Injuries in Elite Archers · Claudia K. Niestroj, Volker Schöffl, Thomas Küpper

  • 2019
    For Archers Published later

    27 male recurve archers, all right-handed, nine per level by FITA score (915.2, 1150.3 and 1244.5 points on average): draw weight 34.8 ± 2.8 in the beginners, 35.5 ± 3.9 in the intermediate group and 44.0 ± 1.4 in the elite, with no test of the difference. The table gives the values in kilograms, but they are plausible only in pounds. The elite archers also had more years of shooting (8.7 against 6.6 and 1.4), while mean age ranged from 22.6 to 25.5 years.

    A comparison of the ground reaction forces of archers with different levels of expertise during the arrow shooting · D. Simsek, A.O. Cerrah, H. Ertan, A.R. Soylu

  • 2024
    For Archers Published later

    28 Chinese national and provincial team archers: draw weight 46.3 ± 4.8 lb in the 8 international masters, 42.1 ± 5.2 in the 12 first-class archers and 42.3 ± 4.2 in the 8 second-class archers, with no test of the difference. The venue is flagged as questionable.

    A Comparative Study on the Joint Coordination of Archery Athletes of Different Skill Levels: Based on Functional Data Analysis Questionable venue · Baifa Zhang, Zhi-Cheng Lin

  • 2024
    Context Archers Published later

    The same 28 archers in a second paper by the same authors, which counts only once: the eight on the national team also have more years of practice (4.9 ± 2.0 against 3.5 ± 1.9 and 2.2 ± 0.8) and are older (19.6 against 17.4 and 16.0 years), so level, experience and age move together.

    Comparative Analysis of Shooting Consistency Among Archers of Different Skill Levels Questionable venue · Bai-Fa Zhang, Zhi-Cheng Lin

Status history

  1. 2018 Contested The first two comparisons between levels arrive in the same year and point in opposite directions. In 30 Japanese archers split into three groups of ten by score over 72 arrows at 70 metres, bow draw weight does not differ between the best, middle and weakest groups, while age and years of practice do. A questionnaire given to 62 recurve archers, on the other hand, finds about four and a half pounds more in the archers at the European outdoor championships, 42.9 against 38.5 at a German national indoor championship, with a significant difference; the European archers, however, trained almost twice as often and shot outdoors, and the draw weights are self-reported. With one small cross-sectional study on each side, the data on archers point in opposite directions: contested.
  2. 2019 Contested A third sample points the same way as the German study: in 27 recurve archers split into three groups of nine by FITA score, the elite shot about 44 pounds against 35 for the beginners and the intermediate group. The difference is not tested, and the elite also have more years of shooting; against it there is still the 2018 Japanese study, whose statistical analysis finds no difference across three levels. Two samples in favour, only one of them with a test, and one against: the studies still point in opposite directions, and the status remains contested.
  3. 2024 Contested A sample of 28 Chinese archers points the same way as the 2018 German study and the 2019 sample: 46.3 lb in the eight on the national team against 42.1 and 42.3 for the provincial archers. The difference is not tested, the higher-level archers also have more years of practice and are older, and the venue is flagged as questionable, so the picture does not shift: it remains contested.

Related

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Research lines

Cite
APA

Campagna, M. (2026). Higher-level archers shoot a few pounds more than the others (Version 3). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/equipment/draw-weight-archer-level

BibTeX
@misc{campagna2026_libbraggiolivelloarciere,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {Higher-level archers shoot a few pounds more than the others},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/equipment/draw-weight-archer-level},
  note = {Version 3; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

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