Archery? Really?

Rugby union, cricket, football, golf, rugby league, throw in a bit of tennis, and you have the sports I follow with the most passion and excitement. I find it hard at times to get immersed into most other sports.

So it is a breath of fresh air when the Olympics come around every four years. The so called "minority" sports, from my perspective at least, get their chances to showcase their values.

Archery seems too simple to get excited about. There are only a few rules (stand behind the line, hit the target, release the arrow within a certain time frame). Not much action occurs either. But this is the great thing about it. You actually have nothing to complain about referee-wise. Just sit and enjoy people using a bow and arrow; concentrating on a target; watching their reaction as they hit or miss.

So it was with confusing unfamiliarity that I found myself sitting down watching the Men’s Teams Gold Medal today within the confines of Lord’s Cricket Ground. I'm sure the fact that the Italians were in the final had something to do with that, but nonetheless, I became amazed at what I was witnessing.

Italy came up against the top ranked USA team after upsetting the South Koreans in the semi-finals. The Italians took the lead early on after some excellent shooting from 36 year-old Michele Frangilli, who was part of the Italian team that won a bronze medal at Atlanta 1996 and silver in Sydney four years later.

The Americans slowly crept their way back into the race for gold and finished their 24 arrows with 218 points. Italy, with one arrow remaining, needed a 10 to take out the gold. Up stepped Frangilli, the veteran of the three man team also comprised of Marco Galiazzo and Mauro Nespoli. The concentration on his face is something that I can only compare to Tiger Woods needing to hole a last-hole putt for the win. Four years of preparation, almost two decades of Olympic participation, came down to one release of the arrow for gold.  It pierced the 9-10 line, therefore counting as a 10. Italy now had their first Archery gold medal.

Archery is similar to golf in many ways, none more so than the importance of a pre-routine. Frangilli touched the arrow to his lip; Marco Galiazzo touched it to his nose. Archery and golf are not exactly the most physically-demanding sports, but definitely two of the most mentally demanding sports around.  Both are a game of millimetres. Whether it is the lip of a hole in golf or the line between getting a 9 or 10 in archery – both will present their spectators with “so close” moments.

I now have a new appreciation for a sport, which is what the Olympics seem to do to me every four years. In Beijing 2008 it was cycling - particularly the velodrome races, in Athens 2004 it was the shot-put. London 2012 has given me the chance to respect the sport of archery.