Korean trials for 2022 national squad start in Gwangju

The final selection tournament for the Korean national squad started today at the international archery field in Gwangju - the same range that will host qualification and elimination matches at the second stage of this year’s Hyundai Archery World Cup.

The selection process for the ultra-competitive squad started in late 2021 and, following multiple phases of eliminations, 107 archers have made it through to the final stage of selection, which started this morning.

By 26 March, just 28 archers will have been chosen. They will then live and train at the Jincheon national training centre for the duration of the outdoor season.

Among them is triple Olympic gold medallist An San, three-time World Archery Champion Kim Woojin, teenage sensation Kim Je Deok, and Olympic Champions Chang Hye Jin and Ki Bo Bae, who is attempting a return to the squad for the first time since 2018.

Talk of legend Oh Jin Hyek’s retirement may have been premature.

The veteran, who has long been dealing with shoulder issues, collected the Olympic team gold he desperately wanted in Tokyo – but hasn’t hung up his bow. He has apparently transitioned into a coach-athlete role for his pro-team, Hyundai Steel, and is still in the running to make this year’s national squad.

Korea’s typically gruelling selection procedure only ramps up in intensity the further athletes progress in the process. This season appears no different, with multiple 70-metre rounds scheduled daily, plus special phases that earn archers addition value in arrows shot in shoot-offs and under-pressure situations.

The initial line-ups in Gwangju will be trimmed midway through the week.

For the recurve archers, the fields of 32 will be cut in half after competition on 23 March, then the final eight selected on 26 March.

For the compound archers, eliminations have already begun. Eight will advance past 23 March with the six selected for the squad on 26 March.

The number of compound archers competing for spots has dramatically increased when compared to times pre-pandemic – and Korea has enlarged its compound squad sizes from four to six per gender.

Once the squad is finalised, further selections will run in April to decide the Korean teams for the second and third stages of the 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup and, importantly, the next Asian Games, which are scheduled to take place in China in September.