Annals of Applied Sport Science

Background. Archery is a sport that requires a unique set of skills, equipment, and mental focus.
Objectives. The aim of this study was a compare characteristics of psychophysiological and shooting performance between intermediate and elite compound archers.
Methods. Using a cross-sectional study design, twenty archery players participated in the study (age range from 13–21 years old). The participants were divided into two groups: intermediate groups and elite groups. The revised Competitive State Anxiety-2 (CSAI-2R) was used to measure competitive anxiety and arousal. In addition, heart rate was measured using a Polar heart rate monitor, and a digital pulse oximeter (Instant Read Finger Pulse Oximeter, Model OX250, MeasuPro, USA) was used to monitor participants’ blood oxygen percentage.
Results. The results of the groups were compared using descriptive, independent T-test and Pearson correlation tests. The descriptive analysis indicated a pattern of decrement in cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, blood oxygen, and heart rate among the elite group compared to the intermediate group during shooting. The results also showed a significant difference between groups for oxygen percentage and shooting performance. No significant difference between groups for cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, self-confidence, and heart rate. Furthermore, self-confidence and shooting performance showed a higher correlation among the elite group.
Conclusion. It can be concluded that the elite archers with better shooting scores are associated with lower psychophysiological variables, including cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, blood oxygen percentage, heart rate, and higher self-confidence compared to intermediate archers.

Background. Sports performance is the way sports participation is measured. Sports performance is a complex mixture of biomechanical function, emotional factors, training techniques, tactics, and many other aspects.
Objectives. This research aimed to examine the muscle activation of compound archers during shooting.
Methods. Twenty-four compound archers, consisting of 10 males and 14 females, who met the inclusion criteria were included in the study. Athletes were divided into three according to their shooting score. A wireless surface EMG system (Trigno EMG sensor, Delsys Inc., USA) measured activity on the middle deltoid, posterior deltoid, middle trapezius, lower trapezius, triceps, and anconeus muscles. The measurement was recorded of nine shots, and the distance between the archers and the target was 18m.
Results. There was no statistically significant difference between the elite, intermediate, and junior compound archers. No significant difference was found between the genders upon comparing muscle use during shooting. However, in terms of percentages, compound archers employed the most sustained contractions of the posterior deltoid, middle trapezius, anconeus, and lower trapezius muscles when shooting. During shooting, they also used the most prolonged contraction of the posterior deltoid, middle trapezius, anconeus, and lower trapezius muscles.
Conclusion. It can be concluded that these three findings show the same trend toward using muscles among compound archers during shooting. Therefore, more research on compound categories needs to be conducted to further findings and comparisons in the future.