Denmark raise game in tense Shanghai finals clash with Iran

On paper: world champion versus a team that hasn’t qualified for a final since 2011. Most would pick the world champs to win the match. 

Throughout the week in Shanghai, Iran have been bucking trends.

Upsetting the brackets after a strong but not dominant qualification, the Iranian team came out of the tunnel fighting. With two members of that ’11 team still in the squad competing and the third archer standing behind now as coach, an opening 59-point end put their opponent Denmark on notice. 

In that first end, it was individual Asian Games Champion Esmaeil EBADI who dropped his first arrow out of the middle. 

The Danes shot a 56. 

EBADI found the middle in the second but so did the Danes. The lead was cut to two.

A 59 for Denmark in the third end… and Iran rose to the occasion! It was still a two-point gap heading into the last six arrows. The world champions were on the ropes to a team that was straight outshooting them. 

Iran finished with a solid if not spectacular 57 or 58 points. It needed a judge call.

Denmark showed what it takes to be world champion: Five of their six final arrows into the 10-ring and one on the line, too. 

Iran’s was called first and down: 233 total (the second highest scoring team of the tournament, behind only their opponents in the gold final). It meant either a draw or a win for Denmark, if the linebreaking arrow was declared a 10.

The judge looked, signaled, and upgraded the Danes score to a perfect 60. 

“That was a little bit tense,” joked Martin DAMSBO, who won the Paris 2013 Archery World Cup Final as well as the team world title that year. 

A win at the first tournament of the season bodes well for defense of the team title at home in Copenhagen later in 2015. 

“This is our team for the world championships again this year, so every opportunity to shoot in matchplay is great. We’re very happy to get the result so early in the season.” 

India emerged as top team at the Asian Games in Incheon last year, beating out a purpose-built Korean squad on home turf. 

It looked like the Indians would cruise to Shanghai glory, too, after the team beat the top-ranked USA in the quarterfinals. But then India, too, were upset by Iran in the semis. 

Against France, India had the better start. 

Two 58-point ends jumped 2014 Archery World Cup finalist Rajat CHAUHAN’s squad three points up at the halfway point. Seb PEINEAU, shooting for individual gold in Shanghai for the second year in a row later in the day as well, dropped an eight with his fourth arrow that didn’t help the French trio. 

PEINEAU, with PJ DELOCHE and Dominique GENET, rallied in the third set, shooting a perfect 60. It only clawed back a point. 

A second 59 end in a row from India and the Asian Games champs collected Shanghai 2015 team gold, 234 points to 230. 

One more step on the road for a team who make no attempts to hide their ambition: “We’re out here to see the kind of archers we will be facing in Copenhagen,” said Lausanne 2014 Archery World Cup finalist CHAUHAN. 

“We’re just going to keep working hard.” 

Read more about Shanghai 2015.