Turkish 1st ever women’s mounted archery team to debut in Russia
TÜRKİYE’S traditional mounted archery women’s national team will make its international debut at the upcoming International Women’s Mounted Archery Championships in Russia from May 3 to 5.
Zübeyir Bekiroğlu, the president of the Turkish Traditional Mounted Sports Federation, expressed excitement about the team’s participation, saying, “Since taking office, I have been committed to developing our sport and implementing innovations. We are thrilled to establish Türkiye’s first traditional mounted archery women’s national team and compete in an international championship for the first time. We have assembled a team of five female athletes to represent our country in Russia.”
Bekiroğlu noted that female athletes in traditional mounted archery used to compete alongside male athletes domestically until last year, which put them at a disadvantage.
“Last season, we separated the women’s category and held the first adult women’s class competitions. Following this, we formed our women’s national team, and our female mounted archers, under the guidance of coach Davut Çakır, have completed their preparations for Russia. We will announce Türkiye’s name to the world in this branch. I wish all our female mounted archers a successful competition,” he added.
Coach Davut Çakır expressed pride in being appointed as Türkiye’s first traditional mounted archery women’s national team coach, saying, “I am honored to bear this responsibility entrusted to me by our President Zübeyir Bekiroğlu. Thanks to the valuable support and efforts of our president, we have established the first adult women’s national team after years of hard work. God willing, we will return with great success. We are aware of the responsibility we have as a team, and we will do whatever it takes to repay the efforts with the best results.”
The championship will be held in Yaroslavl, Russia, with athletes competing on two separate courses, the Poland Course and the Korea Course.
Türkiye will be represented by the national team, which consists of Ayşe Melek Okuyucu, Kevser Feyza Alptekin, Sevilay Çakır, Havva Yazıcı and Sümeyye Kınacı.