On an unassuming Sunday, at Shing Mun Valley Sports Center, recurve archer Kwok Yin Chai raises his bow and takes aim. He stands in a row alongside other archers, the air thick with tension, the noonday sun beating down on them. He shoots. All the way down the range, an arrow finds its mark.
Chai is a decorated athlete who has competed in eight Hong Kong tournaments and been the MVP of Men’s Recurve for four years running. This week, he is representing Hong Kong in the archery leg of the 2026 Asian Games.
At first glance, archery may seem like a strange sport to include, but this noble sport actually has a storied history. Since its first occurrence over 60,000 years ago, archery has been revived several times throughout human history, evolving toward a more recreational focus. Modern competitive archery is a test of precision; archers must try to hit targets at long distances as accurately as possible to win.
For athletes like Chai, archery is more than a sport. It’s an aspiration and a way of life. If he’s not practicing archery, he’s coaching it. But how did it all begin?
Chai was first introduced to archery as a kid, when his coach came to his middle school to form an archery team. At the time, archery was still a relatively new sport, with very few people familiar with or interested in it. Chai was just one of the few kids selected for this team.
“At the time, I didn’t really like archery that much,” admits Chai, “The entire time I was in middle school, I wasn’t really invested in the team. It wasn’t until I was in high school, nearing graduation, that I realized I didn’t really have anything that represented me. So I wanted to be good at something, and that thing ended up being archery.”
In 2020, Chai attended the Asia Cup in Bangkok, his first overseas competition. It would be a turning point for Chai, who would go on to dedicate almost all his time to archery. Some might ask, what is it about this sport that keeps drawing him in?
“Hong Kong Archery represents me, and I represent Hong Kong Archery,” Chai says. Archery has brought him an immense sense of belonging and community. And although the circle may be small, Chai proves that it is not lacking in passion.
Chai splits his time between coaching and training: “My main focus is still being an athlete, so training takes up a big portion of time.” In the mornings, Chai arrives at the archery range by 8:30 am for warm-ups and drills.
“The night before training, I will write out my goals, so the next day I can take a look at what I have to do and start my morning section,” says Chai. “It goes on for about 2 hours, sometimes less, sometimes more. It depends on the period, like if it is game session or time for competition preparation, or if it is off-season.
“2:00 starts my afternoon section. Sometimes in the evenings if I don’t have coaching, I’ll do some workouts, some weight training.”
But Chai makes sure to maintain a healthy balance of life and training.
“11:00 to 2:00 is rest time. The rest of the time could be for coaching, like if my students come to the range to practice, and I’ll eat in the middle.
“I think rest is important. This is actually something I’ve only recently started getting better at,” Chai admits. “It makes my afternoon section more refreshing.”
Despite the enthusiasm of the archery community, the sport remains underrated in the eyes of the general public. “In Hong Kong in recent years, athletes in other sports have been getting better and better, but we have seen no improvement, which means even fewer people will notice us.” Chai hopes that events like the Asian Games will draw more attention to archery and ignite interest among today’s youth.
“I think I represent Hong Kong’s lower limit. Hong Kong has many archers who may have more potential than me, who could easily do better than me, but none have appeared so far. What I can do, anyone else can do too.”