Interrogating the Key Policy Factors Behind South Korea’s Archery Success

Abstract

This paper aims to interrogate the key policy factors behind South Korea’s archery success. Based on our review on the history of Korean archery, two additional key elements in terms of organization and administration were also included to form the analytical framework of this research, aside from Green and Houlihan’s four key policy elements. Our analytical framework is thus comprised of two background elements for elite sport development – the organizational structure and administration, and four areas of elite sport policy. According to our analytical framework, this paper highlights four key policy dimensions that have influenced South Korea’s archery success, as follows: (i) establishment of the Korean Archery Association (KAA) and the involvement of business elites; (ii) emergence of potential full-time archers by the identification of, and the support for, young talented athletes; (iii) developments in sport science, coaching, and facilities/equipment; and (iv) the provision of more systematic competition opportunities for elite-level archers. In summary, the success of Korean archers might be closely linked to the result of the KAA’s staunch strategy and policy initiatives encouraged by the government for international sporting success and the way in which the organization has paid more salient attention to the policy commitments as noted above.