Head to head archery: DELOCHE versus GELLENTHIEN

France’s Pierre-Julien DELOCHE and five-time Archery World Cup finalist Braden GELLENTHIEN from the USA are two of the top compound archers in the world. PJ is currently ranked number one in the world, with Braden at number three. Both will be going to Medellin, but who will come out on top?

France   PJ DELOCHE
1 World ranking   Compound man

Hoyt Pro Comp Elite Bow
Easton X10 Arrows

Pierre-Julien DELOCHE
@pjdeloche
www.pjdeloche.com Braden GELLENTHIEN   USA
Compound man   World ranking 3

Bow Mathews Apex 7
Arrows Easton X10

Braden Gellenthien
@brgarcher
 

Current form

Both men are riding high after Shanghai. PJ claimed a silver medal in the individual event, pipped by his teammate Sebastien PEINEAU by a point – but on paper, this looked like an upset. Shanghai was PJ’s fifth international final in a row, and gold was definitely expected against a man with much less outdoor experience. There were definitely shades of Belek 2013, when PJ lost the world title to the 19-year-old Mike SCHLOESSER. He picked up Shanghai mixed team bronze, too.

Braden took home a team gold medal from Shanghai, when with Bridger DEATON and Reo WILDE as a dominant USA squad crushed Australia in a rainy final. His individual campaign unexpectedly ended in the third round to YANG Youngho of Korea.

Advantage: push

Track records

Both men have an amazing track record indoors and out. Braden has half-a-dozen world and national indoor titles, a World Cup Final gold medal and many, many podium finishes. He’s been ranked the world number one archer five times for a grand total of 733 days. 

PJ, meanwhile, has an impressive three World Cup stage gold medals and dozens of podium finishes including a world championships silver.

Braden’s been active on the international scene since 2003… and it’s difficult to argue with the consistency of the man: he has made five Archery World Cup Finals, after all.

Advantage: Braden

Head to head match-ups

This pair last faced each other in the Indoor Archery World Cup semifinal at Marrakesh 2013. The match went to a second shoot-off, after both archers shot pinhole 10s with their first arrows. Second time around, Braden kept in the middle while PJ veered off.

Braden went on to win the Marrakesh tournament, while PJ came fourth. If they meet in Medellin, this memorable indoor clash will likely weigh on both men’s minds.

Advantage: Braden

Mental game

PJ usually projects the classic ‘iceman’ demeanour – super cool, super calm, super French – even when he’s won.

Braden likes to ride the moments more, and you’ll see his fist pumping during competition. Rumour is he’s got himself a new squeeze, in the form of a certain Latin American recurve star. Surely that’s got to be a distraction?

Advantage: PJ

Shooting style

PJ shoots with a back tension-style release aid. That means he does not engage a trigger button to release his shots, instead just pulling and aiming, waiting for the trigger to go off naturally (as it reaches a certain, pre-set point). He’s active and deliberate with his shot, fully-extended and very settled at full draw… it’s quite enjoyable to watch.

Braden’s release aid is also a back tension – hook style. He’s got it set really, really light – which means Braden often shoots quickly, with a lot of focus on aiming well with his front arm early in the shot. Although it works extremely well for him, it’s a much tougher style to perfect.

The tests of technique are durability and longevity. Both Braden and PJ have been shooting well for a long time, but PJ’s shot has been tested under seriously changing conditions the past six months – wind at Belek 2013 and rain at Shanghai 2014 – and passed with flying colours.

Advantage: PJ

Archery image

PJ’s got his own website, full of blog posts, tips and tricks – and lots of handy information about all sorts of things archery… if you can speak French. If not, you’ll have to get busy with Google Translate. He’s also on Facebook and Twitter, occasionally.

Braden doesn’t have a website but is much busier on Twitter. Good work all round!

Advantage: PJ

Conclusion

It’s a difficult one to call – with both men shooting right at the top of their game. Individually, though, it’s PJ who’s coming off the back of a Shanghai finals appearance… so he gets the slight edge.

Really, though, we just hope they end up meeting in Medellin. It would be exactly what the sport – and we – deserve!

The pick: PJ

Tune in to the second stage of the 2014 Archery World Cup in Medellin, which starts next Tuesday.

Author: The Infinite Curve

The Infinite Curve is a blogger from London who writes about pretty much anything archery related: from history to athletes and current international competitions.

Visit The Infinite Curve’s website and blog, follow @infinite_curve on Twitter and check out his Facebook page.