When Wian Roux lines up on 29 July during the Paris Olympic Games to shoot his first arrow at the bull, the numbers three, eight and 12 will be significant.
It will be the first time in 12 years that a South African archer competes at the Olympic Games. The Tuks student is the third male archer to do so and only the eighth since 1992. Five female archers have competed at the Games.
Malcolm Todd has the distinction of being the first male archer to aim at an Olympic target. He did so in 1992 in Barcelona. In 2008, in Beijing, it was Calvin Hartley. The South African came so close to qualifying for the Round of 32. When the last arrow was shot, Hartley and Juan Stevens (Cuba) both scored 107. The Cuban won the final shootout by one point.
It is because of such moments that Roux is so passionate about archery. Currently, he is competing in the recurve category at the World Cup in Turkey. As is his dad, Patrick. In Paris, Dad will be his son’s coach and manager.
Putting arrows into the centre of the bull is a family thing for the Rouxs’. Last year, during the World University Games, his mother, Gerda, was the team coach. She is herself an accomplished archer. She won a bronze medal at the 2013 World Championships. As far as can be established, she is one of only three South African female archers to have done so.
Wian Roux certainly has been coming through the ranks. During the 2018 African Youth Games in Algeria, he won a silver medal, which led to his selection for the Youth Olympic Games. Last year, the Tuks archer competed in the World University Games. He has also been the African and South African champion. In 2023, Roux set a South African record, scoring 651 out of 720 points.
Roux firmly believes that being competitive as an archer requires a good mindset.
“I try to stick to a set routine day after day. Many archers tend to think training is only about shooting arrows. But it is about more than that. During training, I try to imagine I am competing. So, I do what I would in an elimination round. It makes a difference; I am no longer overwhelmed and doubting my abilities when I line up to shoot in competition.”
According to Patrick Roux, people are mistaken if they think archery is an easy sport.
“To be competitive, an archer must shoot at least 300 arrows six days a week during training. It equates to 1800 arrows. During a competition, you could easily shoot up to 150 arrows.
“Many might not know that every time you draw back the bow, it is like lifting 24 kilogrammes. This means that shooting 150 arrows is similar to moving 3,600 kg of bricks from one pile to another. A recurve bow can weigh close to 12 kilogrammes. During a competition, an archer walks approximately seven kilometres to and from the target to collect his arrows. All of this time, you need to be utterly focused.”
Other Tuks athletes to compete at the Paris Games are:
Swimming: Pieter Coetze (100m, 200m backstroke), Matthew Sates (100m, 200m butterfly and 200m IM), Kaylene Corbett (200m breaststroke), Erin Gallagher (100m butterfly) and Tatjana Smith (100m, 200m breaststroke).
Athletics: Jovan van Vuuren (long jump) and Neil Cornelius (coach).
Hockey: Calvin Davis, Edith Molikoe and Sigz Ntuli (coach).
Sevens rugby: Libby Janse van Rensburg.
Rowing: Chris Baxter and John Smith (men’s pairs).
