During the medieval festival in Alès, France, a lighthearted archery competition on the Place de l’Hôtel de Ville drew crowds on Saturday, October 3. Seven participants from various historical reenactment groups at the Fort Vauban military camp faced off using handmade traditional bows and three distinct targets shaped like a boar, a dragon, and a badger.
Archery Contest Debuts at the Semaine cévenole in Alès
The archery tournament served as one of the primary new attractions for this year’s Semaine cévenole heritage celebration in the capital of the Cévennes region. Seven competitors took turns shooting at the animal-shaped targets set up in the town square at 11 a.m. local time on Saturday. Christian, representing the Archers de Fébus company as prince of Béarn figure Gaston Fébus, noted that the equipment used in the contest was entirely handmade. Sylvie, shooting alongside him in the same company, stood out as the sole female competitor in the field.
Finalists Battle for the Top Spot and Local Refreshments
Sylvie opened her round with a strong showing, scoring 26 points out of a maximum possible 33 across her first series of arrows. Alongside her, Marc—a first-time archer representing the “Cour pontificale” and a resident of Saint-Nazaire near Bagnols-sur-Cèze—successfully landed all three of his initial arrows despite having no prior experience with real bows beyond childhood toys. Marc and Christian joined Sylvie in the final round, where the top three competitors fired two additional scoring salves at the targets.
As the final results approached, Sylvie joked about the tournament’s informal stakes, telling spectators, “If I win, I get aperitif all weekend!” Spectators lined the barriers to watch the tournament unfold, including a visitor from Switzerland named Clémentine who attended with her daughters Hermance and Isaure.
Sylvie Claims Victory in Tournament Standings
When the final scores were tallied following the decisive rounds, Sylvie claimed victory over her peers. Marc finished closely behind in second place, with Christian rounding out the top three finishers in third position.
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