Higher-level archers keep the drawing arm less open at the shoulder

The summary today

There is only one comparison by level: thirty Japanese recurve archers, split into three groups of ten by their score at 70 metres and measured in the laboratory as the clicker goes off. In the elite the drawing arm is opened at 99 degrees from the vertical, in the pre-elite at 106 and in the beginners at 107, and in the elite the elbow is also less flexed, 138 degrees against 143. None of the three groups reaches the 90 degrees the same study cites as the ideal position. A sample of thirty-one Korean elite archers sits at around 101 degrees, that is where the Japanese elite sit, and eight weeks of lower trapezius strengthening do not move that angle by a single degree. What is measured is how far the arm is opened at the shoulder, not how far the shoulder blade rises, and the figure says that the angle comes down as the level goes up, not that lowering it makes you shoot better.

Also phrased as: "keeping the drawing shoulder low"; "not lifting the shoulder at full draw"; "drawing elbow too high"; "shoulder abduction at full draw"; "shoulder creeping up at anchor"

Evidence

• 2018
  For Archers Published later

  30 Japanese male recurve archers, split into three groups of 10 by their score over 72 arrows at 70 m (633, 593 and 557.5 points), with the position measured in the laboratory on shots at 2 m: as the clicker goes off the abduction of the drawing shoulder is 99.0 ± 4.5 degrees in the elite, 105.8 ± 6.5 in the pre-elite (p below 0.05) and 107.2 ± 4.0 in the beginners (p below 0.01); elbow flexion is 138.3 ± 5.0 degrees against 143.3 and 143.6 (p below 0.05). Horizontal extension of the shoulder does not differ between groups.

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

• 2018
  Context Archers Published later

  In the same 30 archers no group reaches the roughly 90 degrees of abduction that the study takes from the literature as the ideal position: even the elite sit at 99 degrees. The 90-degree reference does not come from a measurement on strong archers.

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

• 2020
  Context Archers Published later

  31 Korean elite archers, randomised, eight weeks of lower trapezius strengthening against control: shoulder abduction at full draw goes from 101.00 ± 5.39 to 102.19 ± 5.02 degrees in the exercise group and from 101.87 ± 6.66 to 102.53 ± 6.88 in the controls, with no interaction (F=0.305, p=0.585). A regional journal.

  Effects of Lower Trapezius Strengthening Exercise on Shoulder Pain, Function and Archery Performance in Elite Archers · Eunkuk Kim, Jinho Kim, Jinyoung You

• 2021
  Context Archers Published later

  15 Polish national squad archers and 15 people with no experience: the experienced archers raise the bow with a linear abduction in the frontal plane, reaching 90 degrees only at the end of the movement, and an external rotation from about 45 degrees internal to 100 external; those who had never shot reach 90 degrees of abduction within 20 seconds, flex the shoulder from 50 to 70 degrees and turn the body towards the bow. It does not say which shoulder it measures; no statistical test, a journal with questionable editorial standards.

  Torque Power and Angle Movement of the Shoulder Joint in Archery Questionable venue · Andrzej Kępczyński, Michalina Błażkiewicz

Status history

1. 2018 Reported The first study to measure the set-up of the shoulder by level compares thirty Japanese recurve archers, ten elite, ten pre-elite and ten beginners. As the clicker goes off the drawing arm is opened at 99.0 degrees in the elite, at 105.8 in the pre-elite and at 107.2 in the beginners, with significant differences, and in the elite the elbow is also less flexed, 138.3 degrees against 143.3 and 143.6. The same study adds the awkward detail: none of the three groups reaches the 90 degrees given as the reference. It is a cross-sectional comparison between groups, so reported.
2. 2020 Reported In thirty-one Korean elite archers the opening of the shoulder at full draw sits at around 101 degrees, close to the Japanese elite, and eight weeks of lower trapezius strengthening do not move it: 101.0 before and 102.2 after in the training group, 101.9 and 102.5 in the controls. The angle looks more like a stable personal trait than something an exercise corrects. It is not a comparison between levels, and the journal is regional: the status stays reported.
3. 2021 Reported Fifteen Polish national squad athletes and fifteen people with no experience show two different ways of raising the bow: the experienced archers open the arm in the frontal plane, with an abduction that grows steadily, and a strong external rotation of the shoulder, while those who had never shot reach 90 degrees of abduction straight away, flex the shoulder more and turn the body towards the bow. It concerns how position is reached more than the angle at full draw, does not say which shoulder it measures, has no statistical test and appears in a journal with questionable editorial standards: the status does not move.

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Research lines

• 102 studiesFrom the total on the scorecard to the arrow's coordinates
• 54 studiesMovement variability and individual technique since 1971

Other claims in this domain

• CorroboratedBetween one and a half and two tenths of a second pass between the clicker sounding and the arrow leaving7 studies · 94 archers measuredStatus since 1990
• ReportedA camera diagonally behind the archer measures the vertical sway of the aim well, but not the horizontal1 study · 3 archers measuredStatus since 2010
• ReportedA continuous final pull through the clicker leads to better shots9 studies · 56 archers measuredStatus since 1993
• ReportedA sound or light cue about the angle of the bow arm tightens beginners' groups2 studies · 1 archers measuredStatus since 2012
• ReportedA thumb grip on the string is less tiring than a finger grip3 studies · 9 archers measuredStatus since 1990

See all claims on technique and biomechanics