Mounted Archery - Modern Revival of Mounted Archery

Modern Revival of Mounted Archery

Mounted archery and associated skills were revived in Mongolia after independence in 1921 and are displayed at festivals, in particular the Naadam. Despite the formidable history of Mongolian horse archers, the sport is very limited in Mongolia itself today and at most Naadam festivals the archery and horse-riding competitions are conducted independently; the horses are raced with one another, and the archery is traditionally practiced from a standing position rather than mounted. In the past five years a desire to revive the tradition seems to have been addressed with the foundation of the Mongolian Horseback Archery Association whose members have competed in South Korea and Europe.

Horseback archery has also been revived by Kassai Lajos and other modern Hungarians. European horseback archery as a growing sport and equestrian skill is principally based on the Kassai, or "Hungarian" system. There are several competitions and meetings around the world in any given year – mostly in Hungary, Germany and other Central European countries, but also in Canada (Mt Currie, BC), the United States and also in South Korea. Amongst participants of this growing sport there is a dream of one day finding acceptance as an Olympic equestrian event.

The Korean and the Hungarian styles of competition are the two most widely practiced forms.