Mounted archery

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Horse archery is a martial art and a shooting sport on horseback .

In this martial art is with arrow and bow from horseback in all gaits shot, especially from the gallop. Historically, this technique led to great successes by equestrian peoples such as the Scythians , Huns , Gök Turks and Mongols over armies of settled populations. With their heavily armored armor , European knights were often helplessly inferior to mounted archers.

history

Military origins

In the steppe regions of Western Asia, nomadic peoples began in the 1st millennium BC. With the targeted use of the horse as riding and work animal (also for nutrition). The horse became the basis of the clan's survival . The intensive horse keeping and breeding tied man and horse closely together. For the next 2500 years mobile equestrian peoples ruled the entire inner-Asian area, also with military means: They stole horses, attacked their neighbors and founded the offensive cavalry warfare . First Indo-European peoples formed as warlike horse nomads , above all Sassanids , Cimmerians , Scythians and Sarmatians , then Huns , and later Turkic peoples , who were finally followed by the Mongols .

The combat tactics were always similar: a lightning-fast attack was followed by an equally quick retreat. Clumsy foot and armored troops had little chance of reacting. With the tactic of the "pretended escape", the nomad cavalry apparently galloped away in a wild flight. Opposing troops were tempted to move in, but were suddenly ambushed. The fleeing people often shot backwards at the pursuers with the so-called Parthian shot over the horse's croup.

Examples of battles decided by mounted archers are the First Battle of Panipat , which ended the Sultanate of Delhi , and the Battle of Dorylaum during the Second Crusade . Richard the Lionheart proved at the Battle of Arsuf in the Third Crusade that an army of knights could defeat mounted archers with the appropriate tactics .

Revival as a sport

Yumi bow at Yabusame

Apart from the Japanese yabusame , archery on horseback has been forgotten all over the world. No matter if in Mongolia or with the native people of America, the Indians . In the 1980s, the Hungarian Lajos Kassai rediscovered and reinvented mounted archery for Europe. Kassai came up with a modern form of horse archery competition which became the basis for the horse archery sport currently practiced in Europe, America and Oceania. To organize it, Kassai founded a world association of mounted archers, the Horseback Archery World Association (HAWA) with a modern competition system and student and master degrees.

Probably the first German championship was organized by the newly founded association "Die Steppenreiter eV" in 2006. This was largely based on the tournament rules proposed by Lajos Karzai.

technology

So that the lower end of the bow does not collide with the horse's back, the use of a rather short or a strongly asymmetrical bow is necessary. The arcs of most of the Asian steppe peoples and the American prairie Indians were rather short, the Japanese yumi is strongly asymmetrical. In order to still achieve sufficient tensile strength with short bows, composite bows with recurve and reflex geometry were used almost exclusively in Asia .

Shooting technique

Most of the horsemen had a flying anchor and pulled the string with their thumb. Shooting with a bow from galloping horses makes very special demands on the archer. The cam must already be carried out in a special way, as well as the clamping and ultimately even the loosening. If you want to shoot several arrows in quick succession, you have to get used to a special bow and arrow grip. The thumb technique offers advantages over the Mediterranean technique, because with short bows with a long extension the tendon angle becomes very pointed when the tendon is fully extended, because with fast horses the arrow hits the bow with the "wind" and not as with the Mediterranean technique is pushed away from the bow and because with the thumb technique there are no injuries to the bow belly or the back of the bow hand when reloading the arrow. The biggest differences, however, are that with the thumb technique the inserted arrow is below the nocking point, with the Mediterranean technique above it and with right-handed shooters the inserted arrow is on the right side of the limb, with the Mediterranean technique on the left. Furthermore, with the thumb technique, only the thumb of the drawing hand, locked with the index finger, pulls the tendon, with the Mediterranean technique, on the other hand, two to three fingers (index, middle and ring fingers) pull. When grasping the target, this appears axially to the right for a right-handed archer with the thumb technique from the standing throwing arm, and to the left with the Mediterranean technique.

Riding technique

The riding technique in horse archery is not standardized. The sport also does not prescribe any special requirements for horse, rider or equipment, only the horse must be able to be ridden safely through the course and the animals must not be hurt by this. The judges present are free to complain about a rider's equipment and, for example, to request a change to it for safety or animal welfare reasons.

However, since both hands must be free to fire the shot, on the one hand to hold the bow and on the other hand to tension it, the riders should be able to ride their horse without the influence of the reins. Usually the reins are placed loosely on the horse's neck or hung on the saddle before entering the track. It is not forbidden to use the reins during a pass, but it is strongly discouraged due to the resulting loss of time.

Since archery usually shoots to the left, it is more advantageous to ride the horse in a left canter, as the movement of the horse and the rider who is shooting are more in harmony with one another.

Forms of competition

While Lajos Kassai practices mounted archery as a martial art, other clubs and associations for mounted archery have been founded all over the world in recent years, which practice horse archery as a leisure activity (popular sport). The leading associations of mounted archery are currently Die Steppenreiter e. V. and the Mongolian Storm Bavaria at VFD Bavaria.

Horse archery was not only rediscovered in Europe, but also in Japan, Korea, China and Mongolia. There other forms of competition were developed according to the Asian tradition. Even in the USA and Brazil, as well as the first approaches in South Africa, show an increasing interest in this extraordinary and dynamic sport.

Kassai competition

Lajos Kassai

In the Kassai Horseback Archery School competition, a target is shot from different directions on a competition lane, forwards, to the side and backwards. The track is 99 m long and in the middle stands, 9 m laterally offset and 2 m high, the rotating target, whose support points in the direction of the rider.

Competition track

The target is divided into three areas, which give a different number of points depending on the difficulty of the shots:

Points
Inside center Outside
4th 3 2

Both the length of the competition track and the time allowed to gallop through it have changed over time. In the early 1990s you had 14 seconds to complete a 90 m long lane, today it is 20 seconds to complete a 99 m.

Hungarian competition

The Hungarian competition is based on the original form of the Kassai competition. It is carried out in this way in America, Asia and especially in Europe and is therefore also called the European Competition .

At the Hungarian horse archery competition, the performance of the horse archer can unfold over several runs / galops. This involves shooting at three different targets on a competition lane, forwards, to the side and backwards.

The track is 90 meters long, and in the middle, offset nine meters to the side and at a height of two meters, three targets, one towards the beginning of the track, one parallel to the track and one towards the end of the track. The track is divided into three equally long sections, in the first section the target pointing to the beginning of the track is shot, in the second section the parallel target and in the third section the last target facing backwards.

The time limit for this competition is 16-18 seconds. Children and young people up to the age of 16 get an additional two seconds.

Hungarian competition

Each target is divided into three areas, which give a different number of points depending on the difficulty of the shots:

disc Points
Inside center Outside
to the beginning of the path 4th 3 2
parallel 3 2 1
to the end of the track 5 4th 3

From 2016, the two middle marker posts were removed due to the visual disturbance in the shooting sequence. All three disks now have the same score of 4 | 3 | 2 on. The horse archer can now shoot a target of his choice from any position on the lane. In order to avoid arrows being shot through, the participants are advised to shoot at the targets facing them.

Korean form of competition (European form)

The Korean variant, as it is carried out in Europe, is designed to fire precise shots in just one attempt on fast rides. While the Hungarian competition calls for endurance, the Korean variants represent the sprint disciplines of mounted archery, which require a quick, precise concentration on the shot to be fired (without a second chance). They are based on a real hunting situation both with regard to the drawing of the arrows before the shot, whereby the thumb technique is advantageous here, and with regard to the lack of corrective shots. This type of track competition consists of three different runs.

Korean competition

During the first run (single-shot), the rider must hit a rectangular target (approx. 84 × 84 cm) with an arrow as precisely as possible, which is parallel to the track (5 m distance). The maximum time of 12 seconds must not be exceeded. In the second run (double shot), the rider has to hit two targets with an arrow each on a length of 90 m. Since this time the targets are not parallel, but angled to the track, the first shot is forward and the second backwards (maximum time on the track is 12 seconds). During the third run (multiple shot), five targets set up parallel to the track (150 m) at a distance of 30 m each have to be hit with an arrow (maximum time is 16 seconds). The arrows may only be drawn from the belt, quiver or boot. It is not allowed to hold it in the bow hand, as in the Hungarian form of competition. Each participant only has two galops per run. From 2012, a shortened multiple shot with a length of 120 m (called: mini multiple shot) and a maximum time of 13 seconds will be offered as an alternative. The organizer is free to choose one of the two variants of the multiple shot depending on the space available.

The triple shot at 90 m will also be offered in Germany from 2016. The distances between the three targets from the start are 15 m - 30 m - 30 m. (not shown on the graphic). The international triple shot variant differs in the distance to the track, which is 7 m, and the angular position of the targets.

The points on the disc from the inside out: tiger head (5 points), red (4 points), yellow (3 points), green (2 points), black (1 point). The colors can be in a different order in Asia.

The original form of the Korean competition, as it is carried out in Korea, differs from the European version of the Korean competition in terms of time limits, lane lengths, target sizes and other extended rules.

Polish competition

Another form of mounted archery is the "Polish competition". Here, the participants ride a course with different targets in the area and have to shoot them from the galloping horse within a given time, the time is included in the evaluation. This competition probably goes back to the idea that a bow rider rides through an enemy army camp during a surprise attack and should cause as much damage as possible.

For the Polish competition, depending on the terrain and the desired difficulty, a winding course is set up on the sides of which, in different directions, different targets are attached at variable distances. Smaller depressions and hills can be part of the course. The difficulty of the competition is that the rider has to steer the horse through the course, draw his arrows and correctly estimate the distance to the targets. The arrangement of the targets also creates the difficulty that, as a rule, shots must be fired to the left and right as well as to the front, back or down.

Competition rules

According to the IHAA (International Horseback Archery Alliance), the specified path through the course must be at least 3 and a maximum of 5 meters and can be limited with suitable means (e.g. straps tied to sticks), but courses without limitation are also permitted. Normally, a guideline time is determined at the beginning of the competition; if this time falls below this, there is a point bonus, if it is exceeded, points are deducted for the starter. However, this time assessment can also be dispensed with if, for example, the ground does not give the horses sufficient support so that falls would be expected at high speeds.

The minimum number of destinations along the route is 6. There is no maximum number, but the targets must be at least 30 m apart to give the shooter the opportunity to draw a new arrow. Also, for a vertical downward shot, at least one of the targets must lie flat on the ground. The competition must also include a target that is on the side facing away from the bow hand and a "long shot" where the target must be at least 30 m away from the lane. The points scored per shot depend on the size and type of the targets and their distance from the track (adapted to the difficulty of the shot).

The rider is free in his shooting behavior in that the bow, the shooting technique and the arrows are not subject to any restrictions. However, no arrows may be taken in hand before the start (only one who is ready to fire on the bow is allowed) and no shots made before the start or after the finish line are counted.

Because each competition track is very different, depending on the venue, it is difficult to compare different Polish competitions. Because of this, the Polish competition is currently of no relevance to international competitions that are held across several venues (e.g. European Grand Prix). Furthermore, the construction of such a course is associated with considerable expenditure of time and material, so that many organizers limit themselves to the Hungarian and Korean competitions.

Yabusame

Main article: Yabusame

The Japanese practice the oldest tradition of mounted archery still practiced today. They can look back on over 700 years of unbroken history. In the Yabusame, the rider is supposed to hit three targets that are about 60 paces apart. It is only shot to the side. Yabusame is an ancient ritual that is held for the blessing of heaven and earth to increase prosperity and peace in the universe.

There are three types of competitions in Yabusame: Yabusame as a religious event, Kasagake as a competition, and Inuoumono, in which dogs were shot.

Japanese competition

As the interest in mounted archery in Japan increased, the International Horseback Archery Association (based in Japan and Mongolia) adapted the original Yabusame competition and introduced a rating system. Over a length of 180 m ( compared to Yabusame up to 270 m) there are three square discs at a distance of 5 meters from the riding arena. The disk has a size of 45 × 45 cm and is mounted in a diamond shape at a height of 2 meters. The distances between the panes parallel to the track are 40 m - 50 m - 50 m - 40 m. The targets can be rotated and are set forward 45 ° for the first two races, this allows one shot forward each time. In runs three and four, the three targets are aligned parallel to the competition lane and the shooters shoot to the side. The last two runs during the competition are the most difficult, with the 45 ° rearward-facing targets being shot at full gallop. The score for a target hit is 20 points to the front per target, 10 points to the side and 30 points per target to the rear. The time on the track is not taken into account, but it must be ridden at a brisk gallop. There are bonus points if all targets are hit per round.

Qabaq

Sultan Murad II at the Qabaq

Qabaq is the oldest traditional form of competition in mounted archery. It is of Safavid origin and was still practiced in Georgia until the beginning of the last century . In this old sport, two teams face each other. Alternately, a rifleman rides under a 8 to 12 m high mast and shoots straight up at a vase attached to the top of the mast. In its original form, a hollow dried pumpkin was shot, which is why the game is also called Qabaq (Turkish: pumpkin).

The game was widespread in the Middle and Far East. It was played by the Mamlukes at the Egyptian court in the 11th century, the Mughals in India in the 16th century and the Ottomans until the 18th century. Even among the Ottoman sultans this game was very popular and miniatures show them themselves as successful shooters.

Mogu competition

The mogu competition comes from Korea and served there as hunting training on moving lines. The improved accuracy through the training promoted the hunting success, the fleeing game was killed quickly. In addition, the improved handling of the bow increased the chances of survival of the mounted archer in the event of war. In the mogu, a ball about 60 cm in diameter is pulled behind a horse on a 5 m long line. Two or four riders chase after and try to hit the ball with (blunt) blunt arrows .

Sipahi mounted archer

Running disc

This competition is based on the Indian buffalo hunt of the Indians of North America and has its special charm through the precise timing of the shooter. Here, on a mechanical device (e.g. steel cable, target with rollers), a target is quickly moved parallel to the riding track in the rider's riding direction. The rider must now adjust his riding speed through precise timing so that he rides exactly parallel to the target in the shooting sector provided for this and can fire the only permitted shot at the target there. This competition requires precise control of the horse by adapting its speed, but above all arouses the hunting instinct and is also very effective for the public. First successful in 2008 at the Little Big Horse Ranch Müncheberg, Brandenburg, Germany.

Other types of competition

Due to the large number of possible variations in mounted archery, there are numerous other types of competition, the rules of which may differ from club to club or which, such as the mogu or quaback competition, are not currently organized in international tournaments. Some competitions in terrain are also referred to as "Indian competitions" or similar. However, these are mostly variants based on the "Polish competition" with additional or modified rules. However, these are not taken into account in international competitions.

Legal situation in Germany

The bow counts as sports equipment and does not come under the gun law in Germany, so acquisition, possession and use are permitted without permission and without age restrictions. Shooting with bows does not require a separate permit, only the consent of the property owner must be obtained and suitable safety measures must be taken to prevent danger from the arrows (e.g. through a backstop netting or mound behind the targets).

Also, no special proof is required to be able to handle the horses.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. https://www.kassai.at
  2. https://www.diesteppenreiter.de/verein.htm
  3. https://www.kassai.at
  4. https://www.diesteppenreiter.de/index.htm
  5. http://www.mongolensturm-bayern.de/mongolensturm-bayern.html
  6. http://www.horsebackarchery.com / Kassai Horseback Archery School
  7. http://www.diesteppenreiter.de / competition des Steppenreiter eV
  8. http://www.horsebackarchery.info / International Horseback Archery Alliance
  9. http://whaf.webnode.kr / World Horseback Archery Federation
  10. https://www.horsebackarchery.info/polish-track