The European Games in Kraków (POL) saw Archery qualification for the Olympics. The winners of the Mixed Team event would qualify one man and one woman, while the top two in each individual event would also qualify.
The top Brits in each gender were Penny Healy (681) and Monty Orton (683), so their 1364 was enough for second in qualifying, way in front of 25th-placed Ireland (1188). They faced Belgium in the Round of 16. Taking the first two sets 39-34 and 36-32, they just needed a draw in the third, which they got (38-38) to wrap up a 5-1 win. Moldova would be the opponents in the quarterfinals, and the Brits started strong, 36-35 37-36 to go on match point. However, the Moldovans equalised (37-32 38-37) to send it to a tiebreak, where they took it 20-19 to win 5-4.
In the Men’s individual event, Orton was third on 683 (39 10 16X), with Alex Wise in 19th on 663 and James Woodgate 30th on 654. Orton got a bye to the Round of 32, while Wise and Woodgate would face the Round of 64.
Woodgate went up against Denmark’s Oliver Staudt, who took the first two sets 26-25 28-25. Though Woodgate won the next 29-25, a 28-26 win in Set 4 wrapped up a 6-2 win for Staudt. Wise would face Greece’s Panagiotis Katsaitis, and went 3-1 down, 25-25 27-26. However, he would take the next three 29-26 27-25 27-24 to win 7-3.
Coincidentally, Staudt’s next opponent would be Orton, and the first two were split 27-27 26-26. However, Orton would take the next two 28-27 28-27 to win 6-2. Wise would face Spaniard Pablo Acha, and draw the first set 26-26, and lose the next 26-24. A 27-27 draw in Set 3 put Acha on match point, and he took it 28-25 to wrap up a 6-2 win.
This meant Acha would face Orton in the Round of 16, and the Spaniard would go into a 4-0 lead with 28-27 28-25. Though a 29-27 win in Set 3 put Orton back in it, Acha would win it 6-2 with a 28-27 win in Set 4.
On the women’s side, Healy would come second in qualification with a Games Record 681 (38 10), while Byrony Pitman would be 16th with 652 (26 10) and Jaspreet Sagoo was 28th with 637. Healy and Pitman got to skip to the Round of 32, while Sagoo would face the Round of 64. There she met Cypriot Elena Petrou, but Sagoo withdrew.
In the Round of 32, Pitman faced Slovakia’s Denisa Baránková. After splitting the first set 27-27, they alternated: Baránková took the second 30-25, but Pitman levelled up 27-25. A 26-26 draw set up a final set decider, which Pitman took 29-26 to win 6-4. On the other side of the draw, Healy faced Slovenia’s Urška Čavič, and advanced with a 6-0 clean sweep: 27-26 28-26 29-27.
In the Round of 16, Pitman faced Ukraine’s Anastasia Pavlova. Pitman took the first round 29-28, but Pavlova took the second 29-27. The third was split 28-28, and the next two were split as well: Pitman’s 27-25 was responded to by a Set 5 30-24 win by Pavlova to keep her alive. This went to a one-arrow shoot-off, and both hit 9s, but with Pavlova closer to the centre, the Ukrainian advanced 6-5. Meanwhile, Healey faced Sweden’s Christine Bjerendal. A 28-26 win in Set 1 was followed by a 25-25 draw in Set 2, but after this it was plain sailing: 27-25 26-25 for a 7-1 win.
In the quarterfinals, France’s Caroline Lopez was the opposition, and a perfect start for Healey as she won Set 1 30-27. The second was won by Lopez, 26-25, before a tied Set 3 28-28 to keep it level. However, Healey came good in the fourth and fifth, taking them 29-28 28-27 to win 7-3 and set up a date with Italian Chiara Rebagliati in the semis.
Healey won this in dominating fashion: 27-26 28-24 30-29 for a perfect 6-0 win. Thus Elia Canales of Spain would meet her in the final: a 26-26 draw in the first, followed by two wins (30-29 and 28-26). A 29-29 draw in Set 4 wrapped up a 6-2 victory and the gold medal.
A quota spot confirmed then. In each gender, the Team is the main event: qualifying a team spot gets you the maximum three in the individual (in the mixed team, having one man and one woman automatically enters you). Three qualify at the World Archery Championships (Berlin, GER, 1-6 August), three at the continental championships, including one at the European Championships (Essen, GER, 6-12 May 2024), three at the Final World Team Qualification Tournament (Antalya, TUR, 15-16 June 2024), and two from a ranking list, plus hosts France. Apart from the Mixed Team spots (1 man and 1 woman) at continental games and the main Team spots, individual spots can be earned in Berlin, at continental games, at continental qualification tournamnents (including the one in Europe in Essen, GER, 3-5 May 2024), and at Antalya.
GB Games 