After the release elite archers move more than intermediate archers do

The summary today

Between elite and intermediate archers the movement of the body after the release has been compared three times, and the results do not agree. In 2026, in 8 French elite and 7 intermediate archers at 70 m, in the half second after the release the elite archers had a larger centre-of-pressure area, larger amplitudes and higher velocities, the opposite of what they did while aiming; in 2023, in 6 elite and 7 sub-elite archers at the same distance, the sideways shift after the release, between 15 and 20 mm on every shot, did not differ between groups, and only the moment the adjustment began changed, before the release more often in the elite archers (77% against 59% of arrows). A third comparison, from 2019 on 27 recurve archers at 18 m, measures ground reaction forces rather than displacements and finds the elite archers lower in every phase, but with no significant differences: it is weak, indirect evidence against. Within a single level, by contrast, more movement after the release goes with worse arrows: among 39 elite archers at World Cup events the shots with the fastest sway after the release scored less, and among the 8 French elite archers the worse arrows had more forward and backward movement. With one comparison between levels in favour and two against, all of them small and with different measures, the claim is contested.

Also phrased as: "elite archers move more after the release"; "follow-through and skill level"; "sway after the release"; "letting the body go after the shot"; "post-release stability"

Evidence

• 2017
  Context Archers Published later

  39 international elite archers at World Cup events, 10 arrows at 70 m on a 1,000 Hz force plate: sway in the second before the release is 20.10 ± 6.36 mm, in the half second after 48.03 ± 18.55 mm, and the maximum sway velocity after the release (235.12 ± 120.12 mm/s) enters the predictors of score, with lower scores on the shots with faster movement. It is a comparison within one level.

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

• 2019
  Against Archers Published later

  27 male recurve archers, 9 beginners, 9 intermediate and 9 elite (mean FITA score 915.2, 1,150.3 and 1,244.5), shooting at 18 m on a force plate in the window from 400 ms before to 800 ms after the clicker: the fore-aft and sideways ground reaction forces, normalised to body weight, are lower in the elite archers in every phase, including after the release, but the differences between groups are not significant (P > 0.05); the range of centre-of-pressure sway over the whole shot is smaller in the elite archers only when compared with the beginners. It measures forces rather than displacements, and reports no separate comparison for the phase after the release: it is a null result, with a trend running the opposite way to the claim, and it counts as weak evidence against.

  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

• 2023
  Against Archers Published later

  6 elite and 7 sub-elite archers, 18 arrows at 70 m on two force plates: after the release the centre of pressure moves away from the target by 15-20 mm on every shot, 8 to 10 times the aiming oscillations (1.9 mm), and the analysis of the sideways trajectory over the half second after the shift begins finds no difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). The difference lies in the timing: the elite archers start the adjustment before the release on 77 ± 16% of arrows against 59 ± 17% (p = 0.007), and earlier. The elite archers shoot better (9.2 against 8.9 per arrow, p = 0.03) and are adults (27.0 ± 4.7 years), the sub-elite archers adolescents (16.5 ± 4.9).

  Postural adjustments preceding string release in trained archers · A. Kuch, R. Tisserand, F. Durand, T. Monnet, J-F. Debril

• 2025
  Context Archers Published later

  37 pre-elite archers aged 15 to 24, 19 recurve at 70 m and 18 compound at 50 m, on a force plate: with the recurve, the shift of the centre of pressure in the tenth of a second after the release predicts a lower score (beta -0.351). It is a comparison within one level, not between elite and intermediate archers.

  Associations of Scoring Accuracy with Postural Stability and Strength Measures in Archers on a Standard Archery Site · Chun-Hao Fan, Chien-Nan Liao, Wei-Hsiu Hsu

• 2026
  For Archers Published later

  A doctoral thesis, 8 French elite recurve archers (in the top 20 of the national ranking) and 7 regional-level archers, 36 arrows at 70 m on a force plate: in the half second after the release the elite archers have a larger centre-of-pressure area (p < 0.001), forward and backward amplitude (p < 0.05), sideways amplitude (p < 0.001) and mean, per-axis and maximum velocity (all p < 0.001) than the intermediate archers. While aiming, by contrast, the elite archers have smaller area and amplitudes and higher velocities.

  Analyse multidimensionnelle de la performance en tir à l'arc · Raphaël Jacquot

• 2026
  Context Archers Published later

  Same thesis, with inertial sensors and a chest belt: in the follow-through the elite archers hold the drawing shoulder less abducted (91.5 ± 8.1° against 102.3 ± 14.1°) and the elbow more flexed (56.5 ± 12.9° against 45.4 ± 20.0°), both p < 0.001, while chest movement after the release no longer separates the two levels (p = 0.121), having separated them while aiming (3.4 ± 3.7 against 5.9 ± 6.8 arbitrary units, p < 0.001).

  Analyse multidimensionnelle de la performance en tir à l'arc · Raphaël Jacquot

• 2026
  Context Archers Published later

  Same thesis, within the 8 elite archers and over 549 arrows: in the follow-through of the lowest-scoring arrows the centre of pressure has a larger forward and backward amplitude and a higher maximum velocity than on medium and high arrows, while the sideways amplitude is larger on high arrows than on medium ones. Within one level, more forward and backward movement after the release goes with the worse arrows.

  Analyse multidimensionnelle de la performance en tir à l'arc · Raphaël Jacquot

Status history

1. 2017 Not studied The first data on movement after the release come from 39 elite archers at World Cup events: in the half second after the release the centre of pressure moves more than twice as far as in the second before (48.03 against 20.10 mm), and the shots with faster sway score less. It is a comparison within one level, not between elite and intermediate archers, and the question remains unanswered.
2. 2019 Contradicted The first comparison across three levels that also covers the phase after the release, 27 recurve archers at 18 m, measures ground reaction forces rather than displacements: the elite archers have lower forces in every phase, but with no significant differences between groups, and there is no separate comparison for the period after the release. There is nothing in favour, and the only data run, without significance, the opposite way: a single contrary study, weak and indirect, so contradicted.
3. 2023 Contradicted The first comparison between levels to measure the shift after the release, 6 elite and 7 sub-elite archers at 70 m, finds no difference in the sideways shift of the centre of pressure, between 15 and 20 mm on every shot. What changes is the timing: the elite archers start the adjustment before the release more often, on 77% of arrows against 59%. Two contrary studies, both small and with different measures, and none in favour: the status stays contradicted rather than becoming refuted, because neither is strong enough with these numbers.
4. 2025 Contradicted In 37 pre-elite archers, with the recurve, the shift of the centre of pressure in the tenth of a second after the release predicts a lower score. It is again a comparison within one level, and the status stays where it was.
5. 2026 Contested The first result in favour arrives: in 8 French elite and 7 intermediate archers at 70 m, in the half second after the release the elite archers have a larger centre-of-pressure area, larger amplitudes and higher velocities, the opposite of what they do while aiming, and they hold the drawing shoulder less abducted and the elbow more flexed. With one study for and two against, on different measures of the same movement, the status becomes contested.

Related

Related articles

• The follow-through: what happens after the arrow has goneIn the top archers measured, the arrow leaves the string in about 15 milliseconds. What the body does next, what studies have found and where they stop.

Research lines

• 30 studiesArchers' postural stability since 1990
• 48 studiesWhat predicts the score, and how talent selection tried to use it

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