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Emircan Haney ends Türkiye’s 10-year wait for compound gold

18 octobre 2025

Nanjing, China

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Emircan Haney celebrating his win with his coach Mehmet Ejder Sozen.

Emircan Haney battled a formidable line-up, rain and wind in Nanjing to become Türkiye’s second-ever compound Archery World Cup Champion after Demir Elmaagacli in 2015.

Haney was drawn against reigning World Archery Champion Nicolas Girard in Thursday’s quarterfinals – a tall order to start – and after defeating the Frenchman, 147-146, he met top seed and four-time circuit king Mike Schloesser, edging the Dutchman in a shoot-off.

The new world number one, Mathias Fullerton, then stood in his path – but being the underdog for the third time that cool and damp afternoon proved no problem for the Turkish archer, who shot exceptionally to take the gold medal, 149-148, just one point off perfect.

The fact that there were 16km/h gusts, regular showers and far cooler temperatures in China made the achievement all the more impressive.

“I already had silver and bronze medals from the stages this year, so I was always expecting to get the gold – but I didn’t know when,” said the 2022 European Grand Prix winner. “This morning when I woke up I felt fresh, thinking ‘yeah, I can do it’, and because of this, I’m proud of myself.”

“Today all my opponents were extremely difficult. That’s why I only focused on myself and just tried to hit the 10. It was all mind games today – I just told myself, ‘be calm and do my best’.”

Calm he was. Haney was the only compound man to use an index-finger release today – compatriot Hazal Burun used it in the women’s competition – but he roared when he dropped his 14th 10 against Denmark’s Fullerton to seal the match, running straight to his coach Mehmet Ejder Sozen.

The pair shared a long embrace, and Sozen – a former medical member of Team Türkiye – shed tears alongside national technical director and head coach Yusuf Goktug Ergin as the national anthem played at Nanjing Olympic Museum.

Haney hugging his coach after beating Mathias Fullerton.

During a period in which recurver Mete Gazoz has dominated the headlines, Türkiye now also has the compound superstar it has been waiting for since Elmaagacli heyday.

“It all started in Antalya last year because I finished fourth – I was so close, but I couldn’t make it,” Haney explained when asked what had changed in 2025. “I took my lessons, I did my homework all year and prepared myself better for this season.”

Individually, Haney is now just one medal short of Elmaagacli’s World Cup tally of four – including gold at the Mexico City 2015 Final and silver at the Samsun 2018 Final – and at 24 years old, he has plenty of time to overtake that haul on the international circuit.

Haney’s triumph came at the expense of Fullerton, who – as in the gold medal match at 5.18 Democracy Square in Gwangju – fell by a single point in Nanjing.

Scoring 148 with 13 10s (eight Xs) is nothing to be ashamed of, and the European Field Champion acknowledged that although the number of golds might not match his ambitions this outdoor season, he is proud of one of his finest years to date.

“I’ve shot really good these past three weeks. I got second at worlds, then I won the European Field Championships, and now I’ve finished second here, so it’s not too bad,” said the 15-arrow match world record holder. “I was a lot calmer here than at the World Championships. I’ve made some small mental changes and added new things in training that I’m excited to keep working on.”

“I’m flying home tomorrow and then straight into the indoor season, which I can’t wait for. I like outdoors and I do well outdoors, but my heart is indoors.”

The action continues this weekend in Nanjing with the recurve finals taking place tomorrow, which you can watch live with a subscription to archery+.