Fire away: Traditional archers warming up for the competition in Kota Kinabalu.
KOTA KINABALU: Traditional archery is becoming more popular among youth in Sabah.
Compared with modern archery, the traditional sport involves simpler and easier to handle archery tools and cheaper materials, and is more flexible and easier to learn, said Kota Kinabalu Traditional Archery Association president Md Suhaimi Sapiee.
“In terms of discipline, traditional archery is far more flexible because we can fire the arrows while standing, sitting, backwards and also while horseback riding,” he said.
The 45-year-old, who only started getting active in this sport in 2016, said the act of just shooting from the traditional bow and arrow was somewhat more “stylish and cool”.
“So, these are some factors why we see traditional archery getting more traction in Sabah,” said Md Suhaimi, who also leads the Kota Kinabalu Kesatria Archery Club (Kelab Memanah Kesatria Kota Kinabalu).
Materials-wise, he said, it is easier and cheaper to find locally made bows and arrows such as epoxy fibreglass in the various districts in Sabah, including from Keningau, Papar, Kota Belud, Sipitang, Pitas, Tawau and Semporna.
He said this after a state-level traditional archery competition held at the Likas Archery Field on Jan 21 and 22.
The competition saw 326 contestants from 41 traditional archery clubs statewide taking part, where 112 were women.
“This competition is for us to select a total of 20 men and 15 women to compete in the national-level traditional archery competition later this year,” said Md Suhaimi.
He said the competition format was based on the national traditional archery league involving distance and descending shooting.
He said for men, the distances in the contest were 60m, 50m, 40m and 30m whereas for women, it was 50m, 40m, 30m and 20m.
“The level of physical and mental stamina of a contestant as well as their accuracy and speed when shooting their arrows are all taken into account in the marking,” he added.
Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) corporate communication centre director Dr Jakaria Dasan, who officiated at the event, said traditional archery has the potential to grow and become more popular among the people, although it is still considered a new form of sport in Sabah.
