Matteo Campagna
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Better archers have slightly shorter and, above all, more consistent reaction times

9 studies · 355 archers measured

ForContextAgainst19902000201020201986, for, n = 1882022, context, n = 412003, for, n = 302019, for, n = 271984, for, n = 172014, for, n = 152014, against, n = 152016, context, n = 152026, against, n = 151987, for, n = 122012, for, n = 72012, against, n = 7
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.

Reaction time by level, in two studies that give the mean of each group

Each bar is a group mean. For Mylchenko the whiskers run from the fastest to the slowest of the five young archers in the group, in Tables 1, 2 and 3; for the second category the text names archer no. 3, at 232 ms, as the best, while the table gives 229 to archer no. 2, and the table is kept here. For Simsek and colleagues the whiskers are the standard deviation between the archers in the group as in Table 1, where the beginners and the middle level have 16.9 and 11.9; the text gives 16.98 and 11.98. The FITA thresholds of the groups come from the methods, while in the same table the middle level has a mean of 1150.3 points, just above its limit. The two studies measure different things, the reaction to a visual stimulus on a computer and the reaction to the clicker dropping during the shot, so the bars compare within each study and not between the two, and neither runs a test between the groups on reaction time. Between 8 high-level French archers and 7 intermediates Jacquot finds no difference in clicker reaction time (p = 0.216) and does not give the means of the two groups, which is why it has no bars. Data from: Mylchenko 2014, Simsek et al. 2019 and Jacquot 2026.
The numbers in the figure
StudyGroupValue (milliseconds)Intervaln
Mylchenko 2014, simple visual reaction on a computer, Ukrainian archers aged 14 to 16Second category273229–351 (reported range, minimum to maximum)5
Mylchenko 2014, simple visual reaction on a computer, Ukrainian archers aged 14 to 16First category225212–244 (reported range, minimum to maximum)5
Mylchenko 2014, simple visual reaction on a computer, Ukrainian archers aged 14 to 16Candidate masters of sport234198–276 (reported range, minimum to maximum)5
Simsek et al. 2019, from the clicker dropping to the response, male recurve archersBeginners, below 1100 FITA points167.2± 16.9 (mean ± standard deviation)9
Simsek et al. 2019, from the clicker dropping to the response, male recurve archersMiddle level, 1100 to 1150140± 11.9 (mean ± standard deviation)9
Simsek et al. 2019, from the clicker dropping to the response, male recurve archersElite, above 1150111.6± 9.2 (mean ± standard deviation)9

The two halves of the claim fare differently, and both have contrary results. On speed, when experts are compared with beginners the difference is clear: between the clicker dropping and the release, about 100 milliseconds in the elite against 200 in the beginners in a 2003 study, and 112 in the elite, 140 in the intermediates and 167 in the beginners in one from 2019, while as early as 1984 the four most skilled archers of a university club were tightly grouped around 175. Among archers who are already strong, however, the difference disappears: in 7 archers from the German national teams the mean time is not linked to score, and in a 2026 thesis on 15 French archers it does not separate the elite from the intermediates. Away from shooting, in the largest sample, 127 American archers, the link with skill is weak (r = -0.26), with 181 milliseconds against 188. On consistency, the most regular German archers are also the highest scorers, and reaction variability is linked to skill in the American archers too (r = -0.33 in a subgroup of 34), but in 15 young Ukrainian archers the coefficient of variation does not follow skill level. All of these are associations between archers at a single point in time, and no study has followed the same archers over time.

Also phrased as: "reaction time and skill level"; "clicker reaction in expert archers"; "an archer's reflexes"; "consistency of reaction"; "good archers react faster"

In practice

It is said that an experienced archer reacts to the clicker the same way every time, and that a consistent reaction matters more than a fast one.

Evidence

  • 1984
    For Archers Published later

    12 university archers from the same club, four beginners, four intermediates and four at high level, 20 arrows each with a contact on the clicker and a strain gauge on the bow: in the beginners the time from the clicker dropping to the release is long and scattered, in the intermediates it ranges from 150 to 210 milliseconds, and in the four most skilled it tightens around an average of 175. It is the same sample published in English in 1987, and it counts only once; there is no test between the groups.

    An Electromyographical Analysis of Purposive Muscle Activity and Appearance of Muscle Silent Period in Archery Shooting · Hidetsugu Nishizono, Koya Nakagawa, Tsutomu Suda, Katsumasa Saito

  • 1986
    For Archers Published later

    188 American recurve archers aged 12 to 74, from beginners to an Olympic medallist, tested at preparation camps and national championships, with visual reaction time measured on a laboratory device: reaction time is linked to the year's average score with r = -0.26 (n = 127), with 181 milliseconds in the above-average archers against 188 in the others, and its variability with r = -0.33 in a subgroup of 34 (p < 0.03). Anticipation time is not linked to skill. The text gives the gap between the groups as 22 milliseconds, while the table shows about 7.

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

  • 1987
    For Archers Published later

    12 archers at three levels, 20 arrows at 8 m, with deltoid electromyography and a contact on the clicker: the time between the clicker dropping and the release ranges from about 140 to 240 milliseconds across the whole group, while in the most skilled group it narrows to between 170 and 180. It is read from a figure, with no test between the groups. These are the same data as the 1984 Japanese paper and count once.

    Analysis of Archery Shooting Techniques by Means of Electromyography · H. Nishizono, H. Shibayama, T. Izuta, K. Saito

  • 2003
    For Archers Published later

    10 Turkish national team archers, 10 club beginners and 10 non-archers, 12 arrows each with forearm electromyography synchronised with the clicker falling: the finger extensor peaks about 100 milliseconds after the clicker in the elite, 200 in the beginners and 300 in the non-archers, and at 200 milliseconds the relaxation of the flexor separates elite archers from beginners (p = 0.017). The signal is averaged over 100 millisecond intervals, so the timings are rounded to that step.

    Activation patterns in forearm muscles during archery shooting · H. Ertan, B. Kentel, S.T. Tümer, F. Korkusuz

  • 2012
    For Archers Published later

    7 archers from the German junior and senior national teams, 30 arrows at 18 m indoors, timings taken from a microphone: the variability of the time between clicker and release, with a coefficient of variation between 3.94 and 7.25 per cent, on its own explains the differences in mean score (corrected R squared 0.66, p = 0.02), and the most consistent archers have the highest averages. The result holds when the archers are left out one at a time.

    Evaluation of arrow release in highly skilled archers using an acoustic measurement system · Mario Heller

  • 2012
    Against Archers Published later

    In the same 7 archers the mean time between clicker and release, between 144 and 176 milliseconds, does not enter the model and is not linked to mean score: among national-level archers the speed of the reaction does not separate those who score more.

    Evaluation of arrow release in highly skilled archers using an acoustic measurement system · Mario Heller

  • 2014
    For Archers Published later

    15 Ukrainian archers aged 14 to 16 at three qualification levels, simple visual-motor reaction measured on a computer: the least qualified group reacts in 273 milliseconds, against 234 for the master candidates and 225 for the first-category group. Skill shows at the bottom, while the two higher groups are almost identical. Regional journal.

    Characteristics of the visual response in archery different qualifications 14–16 years · Nina Mylchenko

  • 2014
    Against Archers Published later

    In the same sample the regularity of reaction does not follow skill: the average coefficient of variation is 24 per cent in the master candidates, 31 in the first category and 25 in the second, with average standard deviations of 56, 72 and 75 milliseconds. Within each young archer the standard deviation ranges from 29 to 140 milliseconds, in some cases more than the gap between the groups.

    Characteristics of the visual response in archery different qualifications 14–16 years · Nina Mylchenko

  • 2016
    Context Archers Published later

    15 recurve archers of mixed level, 30 arrows each at 18 m: among the predictors of distance from the centre is each shot's deviation from the archer's usual clicker-to-release time, not the length of that time, but the whole model explains only 7.7 per cent of the variability. It concerns the arrows of the same archer, not archers of different levels.

    Identification of temporal factors related to shot performance for indoor recurve archery · Andrew J. Callaway, Johanna Wiedlack, Mario Heller

  • 2019
    For Archers Published later

    27 recurve archers, 9 elite, 9 intermediate and 9 beginners, on a force plate with a sensor on the clicker: the time between the clicker dropping and the response is 111.6 ± 9.2 milliseconds in the elite, 140.0 ± 12.0 in the intermediates and 167.2 ± 17.0 in the beginners. The study reports only means and standard deviations, with no test between groups, and the standard deviation measures the spread between archers in a group, not the consistency of each one.

    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

  • 2022
    Context Review Published later

    A systematic review of 41 studies on performance assessment in archery reports that among elite archers the shot-to-shot consistency of clicker reaction time is the best predictor of performance in a 2017 study, and that a 2012 paper agrees, while the average value, around 150 milliseconds, is not enough to explain differences within an elite group. It adds no samples.

    Performance assessment in archery: a systematic review · Eleonora Vendrame, Valeria Belluscio, Luigi Truppa, Lorenzo Rum, Aldo Lazich, Elena Bergamini, Andrea Mannini

  • 2026
    Against Archers Published later

    A doctoral thesis, 8 high-level French recurve archers (best mean score 654.6 out of 720) and 7 intermediates (523.3), arrows at 70 m: clicker reaction time does not differ between the two groups (p = 0.216), and its variability is not among those that set the elite apart. In the author's reading, beyond a certain level clicker reaction no longer separates archers.

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

Status history

  1. 1984 Reported The first measurement comes from within the shot: in 12 Japanese university archers at three levels, with a contact on the clicker, the time between the click and the release is long and scattered in the beginners, ranges from 150 to 210 milliseconds in the intermediates and tightens around 175 in the four most skilled. Shorter and more tightly grouped as skill rises, then, but in a few archers and with no test between the groups: the evidence in favour is there and it is limited.
  2. 1986 Reported The first study away from shooting, of 127 recurve archers from beginners to an Olympic medallist, finds slightly shorter visual reaction times in the better archers (181 against 188 milliseconds, r = -0.26) and a somewhat stronger link with its variability (r = -0.33 in 34 archers). Reaction is measured on a device away from shooting, and it is a cross-sectional association: it adds to the 1984 study and the evidence in favour remains limited.
  3. 2003 Reported With forearm electromyography synchronised with the clicker, 10 Turkish national team archers and 10 beginners separate clearly: the finger extensor peaks about 100 milliseconds after the click in the elite and 200 in the beginners. It is the widest gap between experts and beginners, read however over 100 millisecond intervals and in a cross-sectional comparison, so the status remains reported.
  4. 2012 Contested Seven archers from the German national teams split the claim in two. The consistency of the time between clicker and release on its own explains two thirds of the differences in score, with the most regular archers scoring more, while the mean time, between 144 and 176 milliseconds, is not linked to score. It is the first null result in archers, and it concerns speed: with evidence in favour and one contrary finding, the status becomes contested.
  5. 2014 Contested The first contrary finding on consistency arrives: in 15 young Ukrainian archers the least qualified group reacts more slowly, 273 milliseconds against 234 and 225, but the coefficient of variation does not follow skill level. It is a small study in a regional journal, measured on a computer rather than within the shot; both halves of the claim now have a contrary result, and the status remains contested.
  6. 2019 Contested In 27 recurve archers at three levels, clicker reaction falls from 167 milliseconds in the beginners to 140 in the intermediates and 112 in the elite. It is the sharpest difference between levels so far, but with no statistical test and no measure of each archer's consistency, and it does not settle the disagreement among archers who are already strong: the status remains contested.
  7. 2022 Contested A systematic review gathers two studies of elite archers in which the consistency of clicker reaction predicts performance better than its average, one of them the 2012 study. It strengthens the reading on consistency within the shot, but adds no samples, and the status remains contested.
  8. 2026 Contested A thesis on 15 French recurve archers finds that clicker reaction time does not separate the elite from the intermediates (p = 0.216). As in 2012, the difference shows between experts and beginners and disappears among archers who are already strong. There are now six supporting studies, all cross-sectional, and three contrary results touching either speed or consistency: the status remains contested.

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Cite
APA

Campagna, M. (2026). Better archers have slightly shorter and, above all, more consistent reaction times (Version 2). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/technique/reaction-time-and-skill-level

BibTeX
@misc{campagna2026_temporeazionelivello,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {Better archers have slightly shorter and, above all, more consistent reaction times},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/technique/reaction-time-and-skill-level},
  note = {Version 2; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

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