Preview: Bosansky’s shot at proving age is irrelevant in archery forever

His words after winning a second stage on the season in Paris: “I want to show people that age does not matter in archery.”

Forty-seven-year-old Jozef Bosansky has been threatening to break onto the top of the podium since archery returned after the pandemic in 2021. (There was an early final four in Guatemala that year.) Any potential morphed firmly into reality early in 2023 when the Slovakian compounder won the season opener in Türkiye.

It’s an often-spun trope in archery that younger athletes don’t feel the pressure of competition quite as much.

Bosansky embraces it.

From near-perfect rounds to overcoming seemingly insurmountable deficits, Jozef has been in all – and won a large majority – of his matches in 2023. It seems like he’s simply never out.

Age doesn’t matter in archery. But it’s still fun watching Bosansky prove it. 

Finals for the compound men in Hermosillo start at 20h00 (local) on Saturday 9 September. Stream on archery+.

Line-up

The top two seeds are listed in bold and will be placed at opposite ends of the bracket. A match draw will determine the positions of the other archers.

• Jozef Bosansky, Slovakia (double stage winner)
• Mike Schloesser, Netherlands (defending champion, world number one)
• Mathias Fullerton, Denmark
• Prathamesh Jawkar, India (stage winner)
• James Lutz, USA
• Sawyer Sullivan, USA
• Abhishek Verma, India (stage winner)
• Miguel Becerra, Mexico (host nation representative)

Bold prediction

Mister Perfect caps an ‘almost’ season by defending his circuit crown.

The international circuit rewards consistency above all else. Schloesser has been consistent.

He’s scoring points at the same rate as he has for the last seven years – 9.85 per arrow – and better than any of the other seven compound men heading to Hermosillo for this Hyundai Archery World Cup Final. In the four matches he lost at the four stages in 2023, he lost while scoring 148 out of a possible 150 points.

Some years things fall your way, some years they don’t.

In the long run, Mike’s consistency will pay off.