Bhutan Khesar Gyalpo Archery Tournament

The Khesar Gyalpo Archery Tournament (KGAT) started in Trashigang yesterday with three teams from the gewogs of Merak, Sakteng and Radhi.

Teams from the 15 gewogs of Trashigang will be using traditional bows and arrows. Teams are to follow the rules and regulations of the Bhutan Indigenous Sports and Games Association (BIGSA).

Similar tournaments are also happening in the other five dzongkhags of the eastern region. Top two teams from each dzongkhag will qualify for the finals that would be played at Gyalpozhing.

Archers must only Tabzhu and Changzhu bows. Archers are also required to wear their team colour (Nyarey) to differentiate one team from the other.

Apart from the commemoration of the 60th birth anniversary of The Fourth Druk Gyalpo, Trashigang’s Sr. Dzongrab, Pema Dorji said that one of the objectives of KGAT is to promote Bhutan’s national sport.

“Further, the tournament will provide a platform for interaction among people from different places,” the Sr. Dzongrab said.

The Office of The Gyaltshab in Gyalpozhing is organizing the tournament under the command of HRH The Gyaltshab Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.  The KGAT committee will coordinate the tournament and shall act as the dispute settlement body as well.

Meanwhile, the dzongkhag administration should submit the lists of those teams, which have qualified for the final level tournament (FLT), to the Office of The Gyaltshab. Finale is scheduled on October 18

Source: Kuenselonline

Road to Semi Final " Yangphel Archery Tournament"

Teams Yul Gyel and Ata Boning have made it to the semifinals of the ongoing 16th Yangphel open archery tournament.

Yul Gyel team beat Sichey Mavricks, a Sikkimese team and Bhutan Expression Tours to book its spot in the semifinals yesterday. The matches were played at the lower archery range at Changlimithang.

Playing at the upper archery range, Ata Boning team came out victorious after beating Chituen Construction and Planet Gym in the 15th round.

Each of these three teams had won a game set each to have to settle the scores through a penalty shootout.

In the penalty shootout, Ata Boning team hit two kareys to win over Chituen Construction that hit only one and none from the third team.

At the other range, the spectators were for the Sikkimese team despite its opponent having won two straight sets through an impressive three bulls eye hits.

The last quarterfinals will be played today among Paro Snow Lion in Style team, Phuntsholing Kencho Tshering and Phuntsholing Tshamgar Construction to reach the semifinals.

The winning team will be up against eight teams of Pelden Group of Companies, Dragon Roots, Druk Lhayul, Ice Berg, Sonam Automobiles, Gyelyong Gaki, Ata Boning and Yul Gyel to reach the finals.

Of the initial 260 teams from across the country participating and playing in different venues, 27 had made it to the quarterfinal round.

Source: Kuenselonline

Royal wedding (Bhutan) archery tournament

In the royal wedding archery tournament at Gup Kanjur’s archery range at Babesa in Thimphu, Thongley Drayang secured five points defeating its opponent teams, Tashi Tagye and Wamling Yarna, who shared three points each.

In the afternoon’s match, Karma Druk beat Chang Shooters and Charo Nga by scoring six points. The other two teams manage only three points each.

The organiser, former gup Kanjur claimed the tournament played on traditional bow and arrow and aping the Yangphel style, was the first of its kind in Thimphu.

The tournament saw 22 teams participating in it.

He said he was interested in playing archery on Pakshi before he switched on to compound bow a few years ago.

“I was sent to other countries to represent my own in playing archery on Pakshi and now I should do something to preserve and promote it,” he said, adding although a number of archery tournaments were organised in the country, it was less on traditional equipment.

“This is one of the reasons for conducting this tournament,” Kanjur said.

He also said the tournament was in celebration of the royal wedding, its finals being scheduled on the wedding day. Prizes have yet to be decided as the organiser are still looking for sponsors.

“I’m starting this tournament with the hope it’ll become an annual event,” he said.

In today’s tournament, Gunners will play Wamling Yarna and Ram Kharp in the morning and Radhi will contest Druk Chapcha Construction and Chang shooters in the afternoon. The tournament started on September 18 and the league round will wind up on September 30.

Source: Kuenselonline

Druk Chapchap construction defeated Phuntsho Drayang in two straight games in the Jigme Dorji Wangchuck memorial archery tournament

Druk Chapchap construction defeated Phuntsho Drayang in two straight games in the Jigme Dorji Wangchuck memorial archery tournament at the Changlimithang range in Thimpu yesterday.

Phuntsho Drayang secured 12 points in the first game and 17 in the second.

Meanwhile, in a match between Eastern Boys and Gang Thong, although the former completed the first set of the game, keeping their opponents at two points, the match could not be decided yesterday.

The second game in which Gang Thong led with 16 points over Eastern Boys, who’d scored 12, will be decided today.

Semthuen Charo will play Central Bhutan and Lungten Automobiles will face Nyamro Chenga tomorrow.

Source: Kuenselonline

Bhutan on going Jigme Dorji Wangchuck memorial archery tournament

Bhutan Visit defeated Phunsum Dhendup Khorlo in two straight games in the ongoing Jigme Dorji Wangchuck memorial archery tournament on traditional equipment being played at the Changlimithang range in Thimphu.

Bhutan Visit finished the first game when its opponents managed 10 points. In the second game, which stretched to the second day of play, Bhutan Visit scored 25 points, while its opponents lagged behind at 14 points.

Likewise, Tashigang Radhi beat Chang Namcha in two straight games. Chang Namchag scored 13 in the first game set and manage a single point in the second game, which was stretched to the second day.

Since the annual archery tournament commenced on April 2, four teams have been sent out of the tournament. In today’s match, Phuntsho Drayang will play Chapchap construction and Geang Thong will take over Eston boys.

Source: Kuenselonline

Archery: National Game

National Game of Bhutan Archery

Archery The national sport of Bhutan is archery. Other traditional sports include digor - a kind of shotput, darts and wrestling. Today, most international sports, such as soccer, basket ball, volleyball, tennis, and table tennis are becoming popular. In Bhutan a game of archery has always been a serious business. Tradition has it that if two villages or districts were to compete in a game of archery, elaborate preparations preceded the actual duel. Astrologers consulted the stars and their books of wisdom to divine the most auspicious day to play the game, including even the most favorable sequence of shooting for their players.

Each dzong in Bhutan has a separate space as ‘Bha Cho’ or field of target. Competitions and archery contests are quite colorful and bubbles with excitement. There are often two teams, wearing traditional Bhutanese dresses, competing with each other. Small wooden targets for archers are placed 140 m apart, as opposed to the Olympics, where 50 m is the standard distance