Preview: 2024 Indoor Archery World Series starts in Olympic Capital

The international 18-metre season is starting in the Olympic Capital of Lausanne for the first time.

This is the fourth major event the World Archery Excellence Centre has run, after the Lausanne Classic (to celebrate its opening) in 2016, the World Masters Games in 2018 and a stage of the Hyundai Archery World Cup in the post-pandemic 2021 season.

And it might be the most exciting yet – especially looking at the compound men’s line-up.

Headlined by world number one Mike Schloesser, the roster also features reigning Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion Mathias Fullerton and world number two Jozef Bosansky. No breeze, then, to make a fast start to the indoor season.

Some 15,000 CHF in cash, plus additional prizes, is available in the four championship categories.

Lausanne is also hosting tournaments for under-21s, which will count towards qualification for the second Indoor Archery World Series Youth Finals taking place in Nîmes in January, and the over-50 age group.

Key information

What’s happening? The Lausanne Challenge at the World Archery Excellence Centre on 27-29 October 2023 in Lausanne, Switzerland.

What’s at stake? Prize money, elite and open ranking points for the international circuit, plus world ranking points.

Who’s competing? More than 210 archers from 35 countries.

What’s the story? The mass-participation indoor circuit, which has five stops this season, starts with three 250-level events in 2023. First up, the Lausanne Challenge at World Archery’s development facility in the Olympic Capital of Lausanne.

Schedule

• Friday 27 October: Qualifying (one session)
• Saturday 28 October: Qualifying (one session) and eliminations
• Sunday 29 October: Finals

How to watch

Watch live footage on the World Archery YouTube channel. It will not be available on archery+. Live scores will be available on the World Archery website and there will be coverage on World Archery’s digital platforms throughout the competition.

Who’s competing?

Full entries are available online. These are the top-ranked archers shooting in Lausanne:

• Recurve men: Steve Wijler, Netherlands (world rank: 10)
• Recurve women: Laura van der Winkel, Netherlands (world rank: 19)
• Compound men: Mike Schloesser, Netherlands (world rank: 1)
• Compound women: Sophie Dodemont, France (world rank: 16)

Competition at the Lausanne Challenge starts on Friday.