About the sport
Persons with a mobility-related disability began their involvement in Archery more than 60 years ago. At the beginning however, just like other sports, it was used as an activity for rehabilitation and leisure. The first Archery competition for persons with a disability was held at the Stoke Mandeville Hospital in 1948. Since then, the development of the sport has been rapid. New technology for bows, changes in the rules and the ever-increasing interest of people have made the sport accessible to more athletes and at the same time more exciting. In 2006, 37 countries compete in Archery but the number is still growing. Archery was one of the original Paralympic Sports contested in Rome in 1960 and is a test of accuracy, strength and concentration. The sport is open to athletes with a physical disability (including spinal injury, cerebral palsy, amputee and les autres) in three functional classes. It comprises of individual and team events, standing and wheelchair competitions. Competitors shoot at a target marked with ten scoring zones, from a set distance. Since 2007 Archery is governed by the International Archery Federation (FITA).
