Elected president of the French archery federation, Julien Mégret follows in the footsteps of Jean-Michel Cléroy who led the body for two terms. For Flashscore, he discusses the boom in licenses after the historic Olympics, the areas of development and the possible entry of the compound bow into the Olympic program.
Flashscore: Many federations are changing their presidency to start the new Olympic cycle. How is the transition going within archery?
Julien Mégret: I had been alongside Jean-Michel Cléroy for two terms (as deputy treasurer, vice-president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes committee and president of the Riom club, editor’s note). A year ago, he told me that he did not want to continue and he wanted to know if the position would interest me. I gave him my answer at the beginning of the year to organize myself professionally but also at the family level. There was only one list so the transition went very well (he was elected with 91.51% of the votes, editor’s note).
Archery is on the rise after a particularly successful Olympic Games, between the Invalides and the two medals: is the moment ideal for the discipline in France?
We are coming away from a very good Olympics. Two medals had never happened. An individual medal for the girls (bronze, editor’s note) either. Clearly, 2024 was an exceptional year.
With Lisa Barbelin, 24 years old, and Baptiste Addis, 18 years old, this reflects the image of a dynamic federation that knows how to train and bring people to a high level very quickly. Is it a vector of licenses?
We are seeing an increase of 10 to 12% in licensees and we have exceeded 80,000, it is a record. It’s a boost in every sense of the word. I even think that we will approach the 85,000 mark.
How do you explain this craze?
In this Olympic year, the image of Lisa Barbelin resonated well in the media and many people identified themselves. Archery conveys a youthful image with Baptiste Addis (team silver medalist, editor’s note). This does not mean that Jean-Charles Valladont is very old (he is 35 years old, editor’s note) and it shows that archery can touch all generations. And then there were also the Paralympic Games when people realized that you could practice in a wheelchair and even shoot with your mouth. A whole population of para-archers arrives in the clubs.
Archery has the image of a friendly and accessible sport, while from a heart point of view you have to be very robust.
Exactly, with stress. For example, Lisa Barbelin told me that when she had to release her arrow to make a 10 to win the medal, with the 8,000 people supporting and applauding her, she felt that the platform was shaking under her feet! The cardio goes up, there is a pulling power from the arc that you have to hold for a whole day. It’s not that simple.
Many sports seek to become more feminine without fully achieving this. Is this the case for archery?
We are a sport that was already becoming more feminine before and this continues. We can see this in the figures, particularly with regard to young girls. Lisa’s image contributes to this.
Is archery mainly attractive to CSP+ categories?
Not necessarily, we touch all walks of life. We are well distributed across the territory so it also depends on where we are located. We do not yet have precise data but they will be integrated soon. We reach all audiences.
Is it easy to set up archery workshops at school and develop UNSS programs?
It’s not simple and it’s a major area of development. There are partnerships taking place in France between schools and clubs. When a club intervenes, it makes things easier. Sections are being created in colleges and in UNSS.
What are the next areas of performance for Los Angeles because you will be eagerly awaited?
We have two axes. First, we need to confirm because we brought in a South Korean head coach, Mr. Oh (Oh Seon-Tek, a world reference arriving in 2022, editor’s note), to prepare for Paris but also to develop a new federal method. Then, it concerns the young people who join the clubs both to keep them but also to support them as best as possible, offer them new things to make our discipline more fun and hook them.
Mr. Oh is going back with you to Los Angeles?
His contract runs until August 31, 2025 but he will be there for the world championships which will take place in September. We are also discussing with the DTN and the ANS to see the different support we could have to keep it. Our intention is for him to stay at least until Los Angeles.
To attract, we also need tournaments in emblematic places. Archery has been able to do this, but how do you see the future?
With the Olympics, there were 3 World Cup rounds in Paris with a final at the Château de Vincennes, without forgetting the Invalides test event. We are in discussions with World Archery to have a big event in France between now and Los Angeles.
According to official figures from the federation, 13 new structures have been created. Is this a very good indicator of current demand?
Even if it’s complicated, you only need to have a few hours at a gym to be able to shoot archery. Outdoors, we are very independent because we just need land allocated by the town hall to be able to set up quite easily.
Even if the IOC tends to want to increase the disciplines while reducing the number of categories, is it possible to see the compound arch at the Olympics, whether summer or winter?
It is less the responsibility of the federation even if there is lobbying to be done but we are discussing it with World Archery which is pushing for the compound bow to be included in the Olympic program. This will not be done in Los Angeles but there could be an integration in 2032, perhaps in a format other than the classic compound bow. And then there is also a reflection on outdoor or indoor shooting. You will have to be attentive to this because there is a whole training file to follow to be ready if it happens.