Dapu hits the bullseye
Another traditional sport that similarly emphasizes mental training is archery.
Archery is one of the few sports in which Taiwan has achieved at the highest levels internationally, and Dapu Elementary in Sanxia, New Taipei City, has become home to some of Taiwan’s best archers.
Dapu’s archery program has been running for 20 years. Originally it was only an attempt to give the school a distinctive selling point, but as it turned out, the students loved it. The school sought funding from the Ministry of Education to pay for training and equipment, and then hired a national-level archery coach. Since then, Dapu’s students have gone from success to success in all the major archery competitions, inspiring a passion for the sport throughout the school.
Starting in fourth grade, students at Dapu Elementary all take one archery class a week. Before they start the class, they have to sit and meditate, learning to focus before doing stretches and practicing their stances and draws. Then, finally, they can step up to the mark, nock an arrow, and set it flying at the target.
Archery training can sometimes get repetitive, so to keep the kids interested, coach Guo Qixian designed a variation for them—a balloon is tied to the target, and if a student can burst the balloon with a shot, a buzzer sounds, signaling their triumph and inspiring them to continue challenging themselves.
Only clear minds hit the target
Guo notes that archery is a tremendous kinetic challenge—the weight of an arrow is mostly concentrated at its metallic tip, while the power that propels the arrow is concentrated at the other end. When an arrow is loosed, it tends to wobble for the first 10 meters before finally straightening up.
Whenever an archer prepares to shoot, they have to go through all kinds of physics calculations in their head even before they draw the bow. On top of that, archery is usually a one-on-one competition, so neither competitor can afford to let nerves get in the way. Only the competitors with the clearest minds and who handle pressure the best will stand a chance at victory.
Guo notes that the children who do best at archery tend to be cool, calm, and collected by nature, because they’re the ones best able to handle the pressure of competition. Children who are easily distracted or overactive, meanwhile, often learn to control their emotions and focus better through the repetition of archery training.
Both wushu and archery alike place as much emphasis on mental training as on physical training. While young children may find both occasionally boring, ultimately these sports provide them with resources that will last them a lifetime.