From the 1st to 3rd November, the Maltese National Archery team, under the guidance of coach John Schembri, competed in the Swiss Open Lausanne, a world-ranking tournament regarded as one of the most significant international indoor events Malta’s archers have ever entered.
Maria Bugeja and Marianne Buttigieg competed in the Compound Women’s category, while Jeremy Bartolo, Brian Micallef, and Daniel Schembri took part in the Compound Men’s category. The team faced formidable competitors, including several of the world’s top-ranked archers.
The tournament began with a qualification round in which athletes shot 60 arrows at an 18-meter distance, aiming for a maximum score of 600 points. In the Compound Women’s category, Buttigieg delivered an impressive performance by achieving a national record score of 560, whilst Bugeja scored 552 points respectively thus placing them 19th and 22nd. Their standings secured them entry into the elimination matches.
The Compound Men’s category was highly competitive, with only the top 32 archers advancing to the 1/16 finals. Micallef scored 555, whilst Schembri posted a score of 541 points. On the second day, Bartolo secured a place in the 1/16 elimination matches with a strong score of 577, ranking him 29th.
The 1/16 elimination matches saw Bartolo, Bugeja and Buttigieg face their first round of matches against top archers; matches having a maximum possible score of 150 points within a 15-arrow match.
In the 1/16 elimination round, Bartolo faced Slovakian archer Jozef Bosansky, the world’s sixth-ranked archer, in a 15-arrow match with a potential score of 150 points. The match saw high scores from both athletes, yet despite Bartolo’s impressive 144-point performance, Bosansky won with a score of 147 points. After the match, Bartolo finished the competition with a ranking of 17th.
In the women’s category, Bugeja and Buttigieg also contended with high-ranking opponents. Bugeja competed against British archer Isabelle Carpenter, ranked 44th globally. Bugeja started strong, but Carpenter’s consistent performance led to a 146–141 victory in her favour. Meanwhile, Buttigieg faced France’s Sandra Herve, ranked 76th globally, in a closely contested match. Though Buttigieg posted a solid 136, Herve edged her out with 141 points. Both athletes finished the competition with a ranking of 17th.
The Archery Association of Malta expressed pride in the team’s performance, highlighting the value of such high-level competition exposure for Maltese athletes. This is further to the fact that the Association is promoting the athletes to compete on a world level, to gain experience and improve their world ranking. Looking ahead, the Maltese archers will continue their season at the GT Open tournament in Strassen, Luxembourg, scheduled for November 14th to 18th 2024.
