Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian mounted archery team secured a place in the Horseback Archery World Cup after ranking second in the qualification held on October 3-5 in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
According to information from a statement received here on Saturday, the Indonesian Team ranked second, with a total of 1,330 points, while Mongolia topped, with 1,390 points, and Thailand ranked third, with 1,280 points.
Contestants from Indonesia, Mongolia, South Korea, China, Malaysia, and Thailand contested in the selection championship held by the World Horseback Archery Federation (WHAF).
The categories contested were Korean Serial Shot, Qabaq, and Kassai Original System. WHAF Grand Master Chairman Kim Youngsup was also present at the event.
In the qualification, the Indonesian team deployed its best athletes, namely Hardika from West Sumatra as team captain, Alan Pratama from Jakarta, M. Yahya Ayyash from Central Java, and Bagas S. Prabowo from Lampung.
Ayyash ranked first in the Kassai and Qabag category, while Hardika secured the second spot in the Qabag category.
The WHAF is an international horseback archery federation based in South Korea under the auspices of the World Martial Art Union (WOMAU) and UNESCO.
Indonesia, through the Indonesian Horseback Archery Association (KPBI), has become a WHAF member since 2019. Horseback or mounted archery is a branch of ethnosport, or traditional sport, which is still developing in the modern world.
This sport is full of cultural and historical elements. Grand Master Kim affirmed that it has a long-standing history in world civilization and is currently being promoted again in a bid to preserve the culture and spirit of chivalry.
With that result, Indonesia is entitled to participate in the 2023 Horseback Archery World Cup final in Saudi Arabia on December 14-16. Indonesia will compete against winners from other qualifier groups from Africa, Europe, the US, and Asia.
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