Strong start to the Olympics

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Elisabeth Straka had a successful start to the Olympics.

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

Archer Elisabeth Straka put in a strong performance on Thursday at the Olympic Games in Paris, finishing tenth in the placement round with an Austrian record of 667 points. "I was so happy, every time I went up to the target I told myself not to cry," said Straka. 

She was already feeling "great" in the three training rounds before the competition, and that continued. "I had two passes in the first round that were a bit weaker. The wind came in and I let it unsettle me. In the second run, I went all out again and everything went really well," she told Austrian media representatives.

Because she enjoyed it so much and savored it, she didn't want to stop yet. "I was really 100 percent in every shot." Normally you shoot four at a target, at the Olympics you only shoot with one opponent. "Then it went zig zag. I just tried to eat something quickly as I approached the target so that the sugar didn't fall off." The mode worked to her advantage, she said, as there wasn't much time to think and you were always super focused.

The athletes had to complete twelve rounds (one round is six rounds) with six arrows each (one pass), they go forward themselves and pull them out of the target. Before doing so, they cross off the arrows, i.e. make a small mark on the target so that you can see later which holes were already there. An adjudicator is consulted in the event of disputed decisions.

Whoever loses is out
The 24-year-old Straka's next appearance is on the big stage. It can all be over after a few minutes, as the direct elimination and matches continue. However, each pairing gets their big moment, while everyone was in action at the same time in the placement round. "The big stage is what I'm looking forward to the most. We stand in pairs and shoot three arrows each. And then you see who has the higher score, who gets two points. If you get six points, you win. If you lose, you're out immediately, unfortunately."

She has an advantage because she is now shooting against someone weaker, but in archery it always depends on the day. "The 64 people who are there are all really top." Coming tenth was "cool" and amazing. The best was Lim Sihyeon from South Korea, who shot a world record of 694.