France names seven recurve archers for season opener in Central Florida
The French archery federation has announced the athletes who will represent the nation at the first stage of the 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup, taking place from 8 to 13 April in Central Florida, USA.
The selection process involved 32 recurve archers competing over four days last week in Compiègne, with the top four women and top three men earning their spots on the national team.
The squad includes some of France’s top talents, featuring five Olympians, three of whom are medallists from their home Games of Paris 2024.
On the women’s side, Olympic bronze medallist Lisa Barbelin led the trials, followed by Victoria Sebastian, Caroline Lopez and Amélie Cordeau. These four know each other very well, having already formed a quartet last season and trained together daily for over a year now.
“I’m very happy to be part of the French team once again,” said Barbelin, expressing her enthusiasm for the upcoming season. “That wonderful medal from Paris is now put away, and I’m ready to win more medals!”
The men’s team comprises Olympic team medallists Thomas Chirault and Baptiste Addis, who are joined by Jules Pedoux, one of France’s most promising young talents. Pedoux has already won several international titles at youth level, including the under-18 world team title in Limerick 2023 alongside Addis.
The surprise came when the third musketeer from Paris 2024, Jean-Charles Valladont – a four-time Olympian and two-time Olympic silver medallist – failed to qualify, finishing only fifth in the trials.
Notably, there will be no French representatives in the compound category at the circuit’s first stage, as their was no official selection process this year and no archers requested to participate despite the possibility to compete individually under specific conditions.
The next trials for the compound team will take place on 12 April to determine the participants for the second stage of the tour.
Line-ups for the French teams at the second stage in Shanghai, China in May and the third stage in Antalya, Türkiye in June will be announced on 15 April and 13 May.
Further trials scheduled from 30 June to 3 July will determine the rosters for the fourth stage of the Archery World Cup in Madrid, Spain in July and the 2025 Hyundai World Archery Championships in Gwangju, Korea in September.
The 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup season kicks off on 8-13 April, bringing together the world’s best archers as they begin their quest for podium finishes and ranking points, culminating in a grand finale in Nanjing, China in October.
French team for Central Florida 2025
- Recurve men: Thomas Chirault, Baptiste Addis and Jules Pedoux.
- Recurve women: Lisa Barbelin, Victoria Sebastian, Caroline Lopez and Amélie Cordeau.
