"Did China Send It?"... Bee Intruding on Archery Team Event Gains Late Attention [Paris Olympics]

Korean Archery National Team Disturbed by Bees During Match
Despite Interference, Women's Archery Team Wins Gold in Finals
"Bee Interference, But I Wanted to Shoot a 10 Somehow"

The South Korean women's archery team defeated China to achieve their 10th consecutive Olympic team gold medal, and it has become a hot topic that a bee landed on a Korean player's hand while she was aiming at the target.

A bee sitting on the back of the hand of female archery national team member Lim Si-hyun.
[Photo by KBS]

On the 28th (local time) at the Paris Invalides, in the women's archery team final of the Paris Olympics, the South Korean archery team composed of Lim Si-hyun (Korea National Sport University), Jeon Hun-young (Incheon City Hall), and Nam Su-hyun (Suncheon City Hall) defeated China’s An Chi-shan, Li Zaman, and Yang Saore with a set score of 5 to 4 to win the gold medal.

The women's archery team was leading 4-0 but after the score tied at 4-4, they won in the shoot-off. The thrilling victory excited not only Koreans but also many others. On various social networking services (SNS) and online communities, videos showing a bee landing on the back of Lim Si-hyun’s hand during the 3rd set were actively shared.

In the video, just as she finished aiming and was about to shoot the arrow, a bee landed on Lim Si-hyun’s left index finger. Although it was a situation that could have caused a big shake, Lim Si-hyun remained calm. Without any sign of disturbance, she continued her shooting motion, and the arrow she shot pierced the 9-point target.

A bee sitting on the back of Im Si-hyun's hand.
[Photo by Online Community]

The problem was that after the bee landed on Lim Si-hyun’s hand, the Korean team began to struggle. After the bee landed, China regained momentum by shooting two 10-point arrows and took the 3rd set. In the following 4th set, Jeon Hun-young shot a 10-point arrow, seemingly turning the tide, but Nam Su-hyun and Lim Si-hyun consecutively scored 8 points, facing a difficult situation. They could not overturn the result, and the match proceeded to a shoot-off.

In the shoot-off, Jeon Hun-young, Nam Su-hyun, and Lim Si-hyun all scored 9 points. China also scored 9 points on all three arrows, tying at 27 points. Fortunately, the 9 points of Jeon Hun-young and Lim Si-hyun, which were initially unconfirmed, were finally judged as 10 points, securing Korea’s 10th consecutive victory. Since the team event was adopted at the 1988 Seoul Games, the women's archery team has always won gold medals up to the previous 2020 Tokyo Games, achieving the remarkable feat of 10 consecutive wins in this tournament.

Netizens reacted with comments such as "Seems like the bee was sent from China," "Spyda," "How can she shoot 9 points in that situation," "I would have been terrified," "The bee was the problem," and "The Korean team is really amazing."

The men's team also faced an unexpected 'bee attack'... scored '10 points' despite the disturbance

Archery men's national team athlete Kim Je-deok pulling the bowstring while overcoming the disturbance of a bee.
[Photo by Online Community]

The men's archery team also overcame the bee’s interference. During the 3rd set of the semifinal match against China, a bee landed on the back of the youngest team member Kim Je-deok’s right hand. Kim Je-deok waved his arm to shoo the bee away and then drew the bowstring and finished aiming. At that time, Kim Je-deok’s heart rate was calm at about 70 to 80 beats per minute. Despite the bee’s disturbance, the arrow Kim Je-deok shot pierced the 10-point target.

After the match, Kim Je-deok explained the situation, saying, "When I stepped into the shooting line, there was a bee. I shooed it away, but it came back again. Since it’s the Olympics, I couldn’t lower the bowstring. I had a strong mindset of 'I can’t not shoot.'" He added, "The one arrow I shoot can change the teamwork and atmosphere. I really wanted to shoot a 10-point arrow somehow." He concluded, "Because I had confidence, I think I was able to perform well."