Arm strength is linked to shooting accuracy

The summary today

For almost thirty years the only measurements on archers found no link at all; then from 2014 the supporting results began to arrive, and since then the studies have contradicted one another. Looking at them together shows that the question puts different qualities in one basket, although the line between them is less sharp than it once looked. Grip strength, measured with a dynamometer, fails to link to the score across a run of samples: more than a hundred American archers in 1986, fifty young Malaysians in 2019, forty-five traditional Turkish archers and twenty Indonesian under-13s in 2025, and above all thirty professional compound archers followed for twelve weeks, where changes in grip had nothing to do with changes in score. In a predictive model built on thirty-two Indian archers a weaker grip even pushes towards a higher predicted score, while other samples, from twelve young Malaysian recurve archers to thirty-eight Turkish youngsters, find it linked to the score. Draw strength measured with a bow scale or a dynamometer goes with the score in the samples that have measured it, all of them small, and in sixty-two national-level archers arm strength has a direct effect on the score worth about thirteen per cent of the variance. Endurance measured with push-ups sits in between: it goes with the score in forty-five junior archers, at 0.633, and not in three other samples, among them the fifty young Malaysians. Two warnings remain, though. The first is that the highest correlations, 0.897 in twenty-four people, 0.945 in thirty-one, 0.927 in twenty and 0.890 in thirteen, are too large for a phenomenon of this kind and come from small samples of mixed level, often in journals with questionable editorial standards: in a sample mixing novices with experts, any physical measurement ends up separating one from the other. The second is that being stronger does not mean being steadier, since in twenty-seven compound archers draw strength bore no relation to the stability of the bow arm. While studies keep measuring one quality at a time, the contradiction will not resolve.

Also phrased as: "do stronger arms shoot better"; "arm strength and archery score"; "how much arm strength archery needs"; "grip strength and accuracy"

Evidence

• 1986
  Against Archers Published later

  American recurve archers of mixed level: grip strength does not go with the score, with r=-0.03 on the right and r=-0.01 on the left in 107 people, neither significant. It is the registry's first study of a large group to test the link, and it measures the hand, not the drawing arm.

  A Psychobiological Study of Archery Performance · Daniel M. Landers, Stephen H. Boutcher, Min Q. Wang

• 1999
  Against Archers Published later

  20 young Swedish archers split into three skill levels judged by their coaches: maximal finger extensor strength does not distinguish the three levels, and neither do age, height, weight, optimism or training volume (all analyses of variance with p>0.089). The measurement concerns the hand, not the arms, and the sample is twenty people.

  Primary process in competitive archery performance: Effects of flotation REST · Torsten Norlander, Henrik Bergman, Trevor Archer

• 2014
  For Archers Published later

  62 male recurve archers from the Indonesian national championship, a path analysis on data collected once: arm strength has a direct effect on the score of 0.36, that is 12.96 per cent of the variance, and a larger effect on assessed technique (0.53, or 28.09 per cent), where together with draw length (0.45) it accounts for 84 per cent. The main effect therefore runs through technique rather than directly through the score, and the journal has questionable editorial standards.

  Influence of Arm Muscle Strength, Draw Length and Archery Technique on Archery Achievement · Hidayat Humaid

• 2017
  For Archers Published later

  24 Indonesian archers at provincial level: arm muscular endurance measured with a push-pull dynamometer correlates with an accuracy test at 10, 20 and 30 yards over 36 arrows at r=0.897. A correlation of almost 0.9 in twenty-four people is more a warning about the sample than a confirmation, and the venue is regional.

  Kontribusi daya tahan otot lengan dan panjang lengan dengan ketepatan memanah pada atlet panahan Pengprov Perpani Aceh tahun 2015 · Maemun Nusufi

• 2017
  For Archers Published later

  30 male Turkish archers aged 18 to 20, fifteen per group. In the group that followed twelve weeks of strength work, grip links to the score after the programme (r=0.729 on the right, p=0.034, and 0.731 on the left, p=0.031) while before it did not (r=0.35 and 0.34, non-significant). In the control group, which did not follow the programme, grip links to the score neither before nor after (r between 0.210 and 0.289, all non-significant). The same study therefore yields one supporting and one null result, in samples of fifteen people, and the journal has questionable editorial standards.

  The Impact of Hand Grip Strength Exercises on the Target Shooting Accuracy Score for Archers Questionable venue · Süreyya Yonca Sezer

• 2017
  Context Archers Published later

  39 elite recurve archers: higher bow draw force predicted higher-scoring arrows, with a small effect. Muscle strength itself was not measured.

  Postural stability, clicker reaction time and bow draw force predict performance in elite recurve archery · Wayne Spratford, Rhiannon Campbell

• 2019
  Against Archers Published later

  50 Malaysian archers aged 13 to 20 in development programmes: in a regression with six fitness tests, grip strength (beta -0.144, p=0.397) and upper-body strength measured with push-ups in one minute (beta -0.131, p=0.431) are not associated with the score; vertical jump and core strength are. This is the contrary result on a design of weight comparable to the supporting ones.

  A machine learning approach of predicting high potential archers by means of physical fitness indicators · Rabiu Muazu Musa, Anwar P. P. Abdul Majeed, Zahari Taha, Siow Wee Chang, Ahmad Fakhri Ab. Nasir, Mohamad Razali Abdullah

• 2019
  Context Archers Published later

  10 female compound archers: no measurement of grip strength, back strength, leg strength, balance or heart rate turns out to be linked to the score (for instance heart rate at r=0.09 and r=-0.40). Ten people and a journal with questionable editorial standards: it counts as background and settles nothing.

  Investigation factors that effect shooting performance in the menstrual period of female archery athletes Questionable venue · Sevinc Serin, Yakup Akif Afyon

• 2020
  For Archers Published later

  12 young Malaysian recurve archers aged 16 on average, split into the best six and the worst six over 36 arrows at 70 m: right-hand grip strength is linked to the score (rho = 0.614, p = 0.034), left-hand grip nearly so (0.571, p = 0.053), and the better archers grip harder (35.2 against 23.8 kg on the left, p = 0.016; 33.8 against 29.3 on the right, p = 0.010). Push-ups (rho = 0.049, p = 0.879), sit-ups (0.115) and back and leg strength (0.560, p = 0.058) are not. The same study therefore gives a supporting result for grip and a null one for arm endurance, and in that same sample height and arm span correlate with the score even more strongly (0.799 and 0.822): with twelve people, strength cannot be separated from size.

  Anthropometric And Physical Fitness Components Comparison between High- And Low-Performance Archers · Jiun Sien Lau, Rosniwati Ghafar, Hairul Anuar Hashim, Erie Zuraidee Zulkifli

• 2022
  For Archers Published later

  31 Malaysian archers aged 13 to 18 of differing levels: draw strength measured with a bow scale (13.76 ± 3.52 kg) correlates with the score at r=0.945 (p<0.01) and is the leading predictor in the regression (beta 0.507, p=0.001, attributed share 36.3 per cent). A value of 0.945 in thirty-one people of mixed level says more about the sample than about the phenomenon, because any physical measurement separates novices from experts. Regional venue.

  The relationship between arm muscle strength, muscle endurance, balance and draw force length on archery performance · Maisarah Mohd Saleh, Adam Linoby, Fatin Aqilah Abdul Razak, Nurul Ain Abu Kasim, Nur Atikah Mohamed Kassim

• 2022
  For Archers Published later

  13 archers from Surakarta chosen by purposive sampling, a single measurement: push-ups correlate with the score at r = 0.890 (p < 0.01) and together with plank, sit-ups and balance reach a multiple correlation of 0.921, with four predictors on thirteen people. Every fitness test correlates with every other between 0.87 and 0.94, so in this sample they are nearly the same measure, and the journal has questionable editorial standards: it does not decide the status.

  Relationship of Arm Muscle Strength, Arm Muscle Endurance, Abdominal Strength and Balance with Arrow Achievement Questionable venue · Gagah Nurya Putra, M. Furqon Hidayatullah, Sapta Kunta Purnama

• 2023
  For Archers Published later

  60 Indonesian archers aged 12 to 13, thirty-four boys and twenty-six girls: grip strength is associated with the score over 36 arrows at 15 m at r=0.446 (p<0.001), a moderate link. Together with balance the multiple correlation reaches 0.480, that is about a quarter of the score explained. The journal has questionable editorial standards.

  The relationship balance of hand grip strength and body balance to archry ability Questionable venue · Heru Prasetyo, Siswantoyo, Yudik Prasetyo, Susanto

• 2023
  For Archers Published later

  26 male archers aged 18 shooting at 30 m: arm strength and accuracy were correlated (r = 0.793). Some of the study's tables contain inconsistent values.

  An Analysis of Shooting Accuracy Towards Archery Athlete's Arm Length, Arm Strength, and Body Mass Index · Ghaida Zakia Noor, Muhamad Thohar Arifin, Yuswo Supatmo, Sumardi Widodo

• 2025
  Against Archers Published later

  27 compound archers in Jakarta: draw strength bears no relation to the stability of the bow arm, with r=-0.234 on the horizontal axis and r=-0.145 on the vertical, neither significant, and non-significant paths in the model (p=0.266 and p=0.167). Being stronger does not mean being steadier, and this goes to the mechanism by which the claim is usually explained. Regional venue.

  Pengaruh Kekuatan Drawing, Stabilitas Lengan Penumpu dan Kecepatan Laju Anak Panah Terhadap Akurasi Tembakan Divisi Compound Jarak 50 Meter · Fitriadi Sandhi Nugroho Yudho, Iman Sulaiman, Johansyah Lubis, Sujarwo

• 2025
  For Archers Published later

  38 registered Turkish archers aged 9 to 15, eighteen boys and twenty girls: dominant-hand grip strength explains 24 per cent of the score over 12 arrows at 18 m (r=0.487, p=0.002; R²=0.24; 0.87 points per kilogram, 95% CI from 0.34 to 1.40), more than fine dexterity (R²=0.16). The two measurements go together, though (r=0.533, p<0.001), so they are not independent. The journal has questionable editorial standards.

  The Contribution of Fine Motor Skills and Isometric Hand Strength to Competitive Archery Performance: A Cross-Sectional Study Questionable venue · Arslan Kalkavan, İsa Kavalcı, Nihan Azra Kayıkçıoğlu

• 2025
  Against Archers Published later

  45 traditional Turkish archers: neither grip strength nor thumb pinch links to the score, in either sex, with correlations between -0.355 and 0.187, all non-significant. Back strength goes with the score in the women only (r=0.560, p=0.010) and not in the men (r=0.265, p=0.200), but that is a subgroup of twenty people and remains a hint. Regional venue.

  The Effects of Physical Fitness and Physiological Variables on Archery Performance in Traditional Turkish Archers · Muhammed Raşit Eyibil, Oğuz Gürkan

• 2025
  Against Archers Published later

  32 male Indian archers from a residential sports institute, fifteen elite and seventeen not, 1920 arrows: measured grip strength is 41.6 ± 7.1 kg on the right and 40.8 ± 7.2 on the left, and it enters the model's top ten predictors, but in the SHAP analysis the lower values contribute to predicting a higher score, contrary to the literature the authors cite.

  Can we predict archery performance using shooting heart rate and other biophysical parameters? A machine learning approach · Chandra Sekara Guru, Uma Mahajan, Anup Krishnan, Karuna Datta, Deep Sharma

• 2025
  For Archers Published later

  10 young archers from West Java with two or three years of practice, five boys and five girls: arm draw strength is weakly associated with accuracy at 10 m, with a Spearman rho of 0.363 and a declared p of 0.003, which does not add up with ten people. In the same group strength varies enormously, from 5 to 47 kg, with a mean of 20.46 ± 9.93. Regional venue.

  Hubungan antara Kekuatan Otot Lengan dengan Akurasi Memanah dalam Olahraga Panahan · Geraldi Novian, Komarudin Komarudin, Alen Rismayadi, Siti Nursaba, Salma Maharani Sopandi

• 2025
  Context Archers Published later

  13 registered Turkish archers aged 11 to 18, averaging fifteen years of age and with at least two years of practice: grip strength is 30.42 ± 8.03 kg on the drawing side (from 19 to 50) and 28.78 ± 7.30 on the bow side (from 17 to 45), a significant but small difference (p=0.011, d=0.21). It serves as a reference for how much grip strength a young archer has, not as evidence of a link with the score. Regional venue.

  Physical characteristics of the pulling and stabilization arm in archers, examination of posture and injury risk · Pakize Nurgül Sarı, Ramazan Çevik, Tamer Çankaya

• 2025
  Context Archers Published later

  A single Indonesian novice archer aged twenty-one, followed through resistance band work for the shoulder: grip strength goes from 20 to 21.5 kg in the dominant hand and from 17 to 18 in the other, that is from the weak category to the normal one, while the total stays in the band that needs improvement. A single case, useful only as an illustration.

  Resistance Band Shoulder Training and 15 Meter Archery Gains · Khumairo Hardiyanti Rukmana, Widi Arti

• 2025
  Against Archers Published later

  20 Indonesian under-13 archers from a Surabaya club, standard bow, five fitness tests in a regression against accuracy: neither arm strength measured by grip (p = 0.925) nor endurance measured by push-ups (p = 0.111) predicts the score, and the whole model has an adjusted R squared of 0.005. Regional journal.

  Physical fitness and shooting accuracy: an evaluative study on early adolescent archery athletes · Rahmaniar Wahyuningtias, Indra Himawan Susanto, Ananda Perwira Bakti, Soni Sulistyarto

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  45 junior archers of the national division in the Boyolali district, scores between 281 and 345 with a mean of 315.1 ± 13.9: arm muscular endurance measured with push-ups in sixty seconds links to the score at r=0.633 (p<0.001), and together with concentration accounts for 58.1 per cent of the differences (R=0.762, F=29.1, p<0.001). The two measurements partly overlap (tolerance 0.698, VIF 1.432), so they are not as independent as the studies treat them. Two reservations about the measure: push-ups are a push while drawing is a pull, and the women performed them on their knees and the men with legs extended, with the two results in the same variable and no composition by sex reported. The article's arithmetic, though, is internally consistent. It is the largest sample on the supporting side, in a regional journal.

  Concentration Level and Arm Muscle Endurance Relationship to Archery Accuracy · Muhammad Fadhil Nurida, Mugiyo Hartono

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  20 archers from a club in Sidoarjo, mixed divisions, a single session of measurements: strength on an expanding dynamometer correlates with the score at 30 m at r = 0.927 (p < 0.001) and in the regression is worth 6.46 points per unit (beta 0.998), while concentration, which on its own correlates 0.616, adds nothing (p = 0.453, and the full model accounts for 86.5 per cent of the scores against 85.9 for strength alone). The regression's arithmetic is coherent: recomputed from the published values, the two betas, the two t values to three decimals and the constant all come out. It is that coherence which brings out the number the article does not publish, a correlation of 0.716 between dynamometer strength and the concentration test, which has no plausible mechanism between pulling a spring and finding numbers on a grid and points to a common gradient inside the sample. Within the group strength runs from 5 to 30 and the score from 180 to 340, and not a word is written about age, sex, years of practice or division: a coefficient of 0.927 in a group this mixed measures the difference in level between the people, not the effect of strength. The expanding dynamometer, moreover, measures a symmetrical two-armed pull in front of the chest and not the draw of a bow. The journal has questionable editorial standards: seven references out of twenty-two carry, in place of an author, the name of a journal, a department or a province, and one day passes between receipt and review.

  Relationship Between Arm Muscle Strength and Concentration on Archery Accuracy in VIJAS Archery Club Athletes Questionable venue · Oktavia Suci Sulistiyowati, Muhammad, Dewangga Yudhistira, Muhammad Labib Siena Ar Rasyid, Kunjung Ashadi

• 2026
  Against Archers Published later

  30 professional compound archers followed for twelve weeks: changes in grip strength bear no relation to changes in score (bilateral rho 0.281 with a corrected p of 0.310, right 0.095, left 0.261), and neither do changes in the bilateral deficit (rho -0.016, p 0.932, the lowest of the fourteen correlations examined). The bilateral deficit falls from 21.4 ± 12.2 to 16.9 ± 11.1 per cent while grip stays practically unchanged, from 44.9 ± 17.3 to 46.0 ± 16.5 kg. It is the most informative design on the contrary side, because it looks at changes within the same archers instead of comparing different people.

  Associations between changes in postural control, shoulder proprioception, and shooting accuracy in professional compound archers · Sema Acaröz, Tuba Yerlikaya, Hüseyin Bilal Özkader, Yelda Kıngır Soykurt

Status history

1. 1986 Contradicted The first study of a large group of archers tests the link and does not find it: in more than a hundred American archers grip strength does not go with the score, with correlations of -0.03 and -0.01. It is well-made work on a large sample, and until 1999 it will remain the only measurement available, so the claim starts out contradicted within the limits of what was measured, namely the strength of the hand. Arm strength proper had not yet been set alongside the score.
2. 1999 Contradicted In twenty young Swedish archers, maximal finger extensor strength does not distinguish the three skill levels judged by the coaches either. There are now two null results and none in favour, but both measure the hand rather than the drawing arm, and the second rests on twenty people and on levels assigned by judgement: they are not enough to say that several well-conducted studies refute the claim, which stays contradicted. A study setting arm strength alongside the score is still missing.
3. 2014 Contested The first study to tackle the question on its own terms arrives: in sixty-two national-level recurve archers arm strength has a direct effect on the score worth about thirteen per cent of the variance, and a larger effect on assessed technique. Studies on archers now point in opposite directions, with two null results on one side and a path analysis on the other, in a journal with questionable editorial standards: the claim moves from contradicted to contested.
4. 2017 Contested Two pieces of work add very high correlations: 0.897 between arm endurance and accuracy in twenty-four Indonesian provincial archers, and 0.73 between grip strength and score in fifteen Turkish archers after three months of strength work, where before the programme there was no link. In the same study the group that did not follow the programme shows no link either before or after. Small samples, weak venues and the two earlier null results still unexplained: it stays contested.
5. 2019 Contested Two studies in the same year point the other way: in fifty young archers, grip and push-ups are not associated with the score once they are looked at alongside the other fitness tests, and in ten female compound archers no strength measurement links to the score. The weight on each side is now similar, and the split settles in.
6. 2020 Contested In twelve young Malaysian recurve archers, right-hand grip strength is linked to the score over thirty-six arrows at 70 metres (rho = 0.614, p = 0.034) and the better archers grip harder, while push-ups bear no relation to the result (rho = 0.049). In that same small sample, though, height and arm span correlate with the score even more strongly, at 0.80 and 0.82: with twelve people, strength cannot be separated from size. One result on each side within the same study, and the status stays contested.
7. 2022 Contested The strongest supporting result of all arrives: in thirty-one archers aged 13 to 18, draw strength measured with a bow scale correlates with the score at 0.945 and is the leading predictor in the regression. A correlation that high in thirty-one people of mixed level says more about the sample than about the phenomenon, and the contrary results still stand: contested. In the same year thirteen Indonesian archers give 0.890 between push-ups and score, but there every fitness test correlates with every other between 0.87 and 0.94 and the journal is questionable: it is the same sampling flaw, not a confirmation.
8. 2023 Contested In sixty archers aged 12 to 13, grip strength is associated with the score at 15 metres, but moderately, and together with balance it accounts for barely a quarter of the score. The venue is questionable, and under the registry's rules a questionable venue never settles a status. In the same year, in twenty-six eighteen-year-old archers, arm strength and accuracy at 30 metres correlate at 0.793, in a study with some inconsistent tables. It stays contested.
9. 2025 Contested Four new samples pull in different directions: in thirty-eight young archers the dominant hand's grip explains twenty-four per cent of the score, in forty-five traditional archers neither grip nor thumb pinch links to the result, in twenty Indonesian under-13s neither grip nor push-ups predict the score, and in a predictive model built on thirty-two Indian archers a weaker grip pushes towards a higher predicted score. In the same year, in ten young archers, draw strength is weakly associated with accuracy, with a p value that does not add up for ten people, and in twenty-seven compound archers draw strength bears no relation to the stability of the bow arm. It stays contested, with a detail that was not visible before: the hand's grip and the strength or endurance of the arm are not the same question.
10. 2026 Contested This is the year it becomes clear that the question joins different qualities. On one side, in forty-five junior archers arm endurance measured with push-ups goes clearly with the score and together with concentration accounts for more than half the differences, and in twenty club archers strength on a dynamometer and the score at 30 metres go together at 0.927, a suspect value in a journal with questionable editorial standards. On the other, in thirty professional compound archers followed for twelve weeks, changes in grip strength bear no relation to changes in score, and neither do changes in the bilateral deficit. The supporting side grows stronger for arm strength and endurance, still in mixed samples and weak venues, while on grip the contradiction stays open: the status does not change.

Related

Related articles

• Dexterity, sensitivity and grip: how archers' hands differ, and how much that weighs on the scoreFine dexterity, fingertip sensitivity, grip strength and hold time: how archers' hands differ, and which of these goes with the score among archers.
• Does strength turn into points? The two steps between the gym and the targetA strength programme makes an archer stronger, but extra points are a separate question: what the studies have measured and where they stop.
• Anthropometry and setup: draw length, arms, bow sizeHow draw length sets arrow length, spine and actual draw weight, and what the studies say about archers' arms, height and body proportions against score.

Research lines

• 63 studiesThe archer's physical profile: strength, endurance and size
• 102 studiesFrom the total on the scorecard to the arrow's coordinates

Other claims in this domain

• ReportedA battery of physical tests identifies the most promising young archers7 studies · 373 archers measuredStatus since 2018
• ReportedA few weeks of archery improves children's balance1 study · 32 archers measuredStatus since 2009
• ReportedA mobility and stretching programme improves an archer's flexibility1 study · 30 archers measuredStatus since 2025
• ReportedA spell of reduced training makes the score drop1 study · 9 archers measuredStatus since 2021
• ReportedA strength programme away from the range increases an archer's measured strength15 studies · 316 archers measuredStatus since 2018

See all claims on physical training