Matteo Campagna
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In archers, more leg strength goes with higher scores

1 study · 188 archers measured

A single study says so, a large one that is now old. Between 1982 and 1984, at Olympic training camps and national championships in the United States, 188 recurve archers ranging from beginners to an Olympic champion were tested, and the tests were set against the average of their official scores for that year. Quadriceps strength in the stronger leg, divided by body weight, has the highest correlation among the strength measures (r=0.48), and every measure of quadriceps and hamstrings taken leg by leg lies between 0.34 and 0.37, with a strict significance threshold (p<0.005); grip strength and body fat percentage did not clear that threshold. Split into four scoring levels, the better archers also had more relative leg strength. Yet it is an association, in men and women aged 12 to 74 pooled together, and leg strength went hand in hand with more self-confidence, less dwelling on mistakes and less endomorphy: it may mark better general condition rather than cause the score. Nobody has replicated the finding, and nobody has trained a group of archers' legs to see whether scores rise.

Also phrased as: "strong legs, high scores"; "leg strength matters in archery"; "training the legs to shoot better"; "quadriceps and score in archers"; "the stance is built on the legs"

In practice

It is said that the stance starts from the feet and that strong legs give a firmer base, even though in archers' conditioning the legs are often an afterthought.

Evidence

  • 1986
    For Archers Published later

    188 US recurve archers (102 men and 86 women, aged 12 to 74, from beginners to an Olympic champion), tested between 1982 and 1984 at Olympic camps and national championships; the criterion is the average of the year's official scores. Quadriceps strength in the stronger leg divided by body weight r=0.48 (n=108); right quadriceps 0.37 and left 0.36, hamstrings 0.35 and 0.34, ratios between the two 0.33-0.34, all with p<0.005. Only seven variables out of 62 clear the threshold (r>0.25, p<0.005): relative leg strength does, grip strength and body fat percentage do not. Split into four scoring levels, the archers differ in relative leg strength (F=13.26, p<0.001), which is higher at the better levels; in the 79 archers with complete data, relative leg strength goes with more self-confidence (r=0.43), less dwelling on mistakes (r=-0.32) and less endomorphy (r=-0.32).

    A Psychobiological Study of Archery Performance · Daniel M. Landers, Stephen H. Boutcher, Min Q. Wang

Status history

  1. 1986 Reported The first study to measure archers' leg strength and set it against their scores, in 188 recurve archers of every level: relative quadriceps strength has the highest correlation among the strength measures (r=0.48) and every leg-by-leg measure lies between 0.34 and 0.37 under a strict threshold, while grip strength does not clear it. The better archers have stronger legs when they are split by level as well. It is an association measured once, and leg strength travels with confidence, less dwelling on mistakes and less endomorphy: reported.

Related

Related articles

Research lines

Studies describe groups of archers, and your own numbers show how far the finding applies to your shooting.

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Cite
APA

Campagna, M. (2026). In archers, more leg strength goes with higher scores (Version 1). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/leg-strength-and-score

BibTeX
@misc{campagna2026_forzagambepunteggio,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {In archers, more leg strength goes with higher scores},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/leg-strength-and-score},
  note = {Version 1; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

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