Bow-giving ceremony highlights World Cup Final Press Conference

ZHANG giving her bow to the Olympic Musem's Director      ZHANG gave her bow to the Olympic Museum Director Mr. Francis GABET on Thursday in front of numerous journalists and fans waiting for autographs. The sixteen archers participating at the upcoming World Cup Final were also present. That means a total of five current Olympic champions and five world title holders were in the room!   Shortly before, Nathalie DIELEN, the first Swiss archer to participate at an Olympic Games since 1988, gave one of her arrows from Beijing. Mr. GABET was honoured to receive such gifts on behalf of the Olympic Museum and wished all archers good luck for the Final in Lausanne on Saturday.   Everybody then moved to the Olympic Museum terrace for the press conference and a try archery session for the media. Here are some comments:   Tom DIELEN – FITA Secretary General “ZHANG’s performance in Beijing was the highlights of the archery competition. It’s an extraordinary feat to have beaten three Korean archers in a row to clinch the Olympic gold. The final match versus the 2004 Olympic champion PARK Sung-Hyung was breathtaking.”   “We are very happy that the World Cup Final 2008 will take place in the city where we have had our headquarters since 1996. Lausanne was kind enough to take the organisation of this event at short notice. We first thought about doing the Final in the lake area, but after some research, the Montbenon plaza, in the middle of the city, was a perfect fit and offers a magnificent view on the lake. We hope the weather stays nice.”      Press Conference at the Olympic Museum Terrace“The competition will be intense with several rematches. For instance, the men’s Olympic champion Viktor RUBAN will play against PARK Kyung-Mo for a revenge of the Olympic final. The world champion Natalia VALEEVA will meet PARK Sung-Hyun for a revenge of the 2007 world championships. IM Dong-Hyun and Romain GIROUILLE were the finalists of the Porec World Cup Stage. We will see if GIROUILLE wins again.”   ZHANG Juan Juan (CHN) “The Olympic Games in Beijing are the greatest souvenir in my life. Although it took place about a month ago, I can still feel the emotions of my final match. It’s a true honour to give my bow to the Olympic Museum. On another note, I was told by many friends that Lausanne is beautiful. Now I can see it’s really beautiful.”   Viktor RUBAN (UKR) “Beijing was an amazing experience and it will be interesting to see if I can do it again here in Lausanne against three opponents that were also favourites in China. What impresses me the most with my gold medal nowadays is that people recognise me in the streets in Ukraine. They are happy for me!”   Patrizio HOFER (SUI) “I am telling myself that it is an advantage to shoot the Final in Switzerland. However, we will see if this is true on the field. In any case, I want to do my best for all the archers in Switzerland!”   Amandine BOUILLOT (FRA) “In an archer’s career, it’s an exceptional feature to qualify for a World Cup Final. I hope I will enjoy it at the most.”   FITA Communication