As we inch closer and closer to another Olympic year, we’re keeping our eye on the selection process and the World Archery rankings for a preview on who we might see on the big stage. Archery at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will open on Aug. 29, 2024. Archery at both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games will be held on the historic Esplanade des Invalides, a beautiful and vast stretch of green space by the Seine River in Paris. Who might we see at this historic landmark? Check out the Paralympic archers to watch in the list below.
*Note: All points are current as of May 24, 2023.*
W1 Women
Nil Misir of Turkey holds two world championship silver medals and is looking to make her Paralympic debut. She currently has 163.75 points, which is the third most out of all three Paralympic categories, men and women. We’d say that puts her in a pretty good position to make it to the big stage.
Lia Coryell of the United States currently has 154.75 points. In 2015, when Coryell first started archery, she was the only woman in the Western Hemisphere with a W1 classification. Coryell made it to the bronze medal match at both the 2016 Games and the Tokyo Games. She is a consistent force in archery with a lot of drive and passion, so a podium finish at the 2024 Games could be in her future.
A close race to watch is the battle for the third ranked spot between Tereza Brandtlova of the Czech Republic and Asia Pellizzari of Italy, the youngest archer on this list at 21. With 144.875 and 141.625 points respectively, the two archers are separated by only 3.25 points. Brandtlova made it to the first round at the Tokyo Games, and Pellizzari made it to the quarterfinals. Will they see each other again in Paris?
W1 Men
On the men’s side, David Drahoninsky of the Czech Republic has 192.5 points. Drahoninsky is a Paralympic veteran, and much like Brady Ellison, he’s aiming to travel to his fifth games. He came out of the gate with a gold medal during his Paralympic debut at the 2008 Games and has medaled at every Paralympic Games since then, amassing a collection of gold, silver and bronze medals. He came away with not one, but two medals at each of the last two games.
With a bit of a gap between first and second rankings, Yigit Caner Aydin of Turkey has 156 points. He is one of two archers on this list who haven’t been to a Paralympic Games yet, but with four world championship gold medals to his name, it looks like he has a good shot.
Tamas Gaspar of Hungary is currently ranked third with 121 points. Because he’s a world record holder and a quarterfinalist at the Tokyo Games, we wouldn’t count him out.
Compound Open Women
Phoebe Paterson Pine of Great Britain is definitely one to watch for the upcoming games. She won gold at her first Paralympic Games in Tokyo and currently holds the first rank in this category with 177.5 points.
Jane Karla Gogel of Brazil currently has 160.25 points. Gogel could make her third Paralympic appearance in 2024, having made it to the quarterfinals at the 2016 Games and the first and second rounds at the Tokyo Games.
Maria Andrea Virgilio of Italy won bronze at her first Paralympic Games in Tokyo and has 145.25 points right now. Can she pull off repeat medals?
Compound Open Men
Matteo Bonacina of Italy is currently ranked first with 128.25 points. He’s looking to make his third Paralympic appearance, having made it to the first round at the 2016 Games and the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Games.
Diego Quesada Arias of Costa Rica holds the second-place ranking with 99.875 points. He made it to the second round of the Tokyo Games, so a second chance is surely on his radar.
With an intensely close margin between the second and third rankings, Jere Forsberg of Finland is a fraction of a point behind Arias with 99.625 points. Forsberg took home gold at the London Games, then made it to the second round at the Rio Games and the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Games. Will he take home the gold again 12 years after his first?
Recurve Open Women
Vincenza Petrilli of Italy took home silver after her debut at the Tokyo Games. She’s currently ranked first with 163.25 points. Can she make back-to-back podiums?
Milena Olszewska of Poland is currently ranked second with 136.5 points. Olszewska has been to the last three Paralympic Games and took home a bronze medal at two of them. Will she add a gold or silver to her collection?
Dorothea Poimenidou of Greece is ranked third with 126.25 points. She made it to the first round at the Rio Games and competed in the bronze medal match at the Tokyo Games, so we can imagine she’s striving for a podium finish in Paris.
Recurve Open Men
Guillaume Toucoullet of France holds the first ranking in this category with 147.75 points. He made it to the first round at his Paralympic debut in Tokyo, and we may well see him again in Paris.
Ueyama Tomohiro of Japan currently has 128 points. He saw the quarterfinal round in both Rio and Tokyo. Could a podium match be in his future?
Stefano Travisani of Italy is another one of a handful of archers on this list who medaled at their first Paralympic Games. He took home silver in Tokyo and currently has 127.875 points.
Follow the Action
Will Pine, Virgilio, Forsberg, Petrilli, Olszewska and Travisani grow their existing medal collections? Will Misir and Aydin make their Paralympic debuts? Will Drahoninsky book his ticket to his fifth Paralympic Games and add another medal to the pile? Follow the archers on social media for an inside look at what a Paralympic year is like. Keep your eye on USA Archery’s social media and the World Archery rankings to follow along on the road to Paris.
