At the second round of the 2022 Outdoor World Cup Circuit in Gwangju, the cradle of the Democratic Movement around 1980 in South Korea, Nico Wiener and Stefan Heincz competed for the Austrian Ski Federation (ÖBSV) in the compound discipline. With a seven-hour time difference and a very dense competition schedule, this event promised to be challenging.
After an unofficial training session on Monday, May 16, the official training session continued on Tuesday, with the morning training and the qualifying round in the afternoon. These were held at the Gwangju Archery Center, which was built after Ki Bo Bae, originally from the metropolis of 1.5 million inhabitants, won two gold medals at the London Olympics. The complex is enormous and equipped with the latest technology.
Conditions for the qualifying round weren't too bad, but there was some wind and a brief May rain shower. Stefan shot 694 (342/352) points and finished 41st. Nico finished 14th with 702 (354/348) points.
The eliminations took place on Thursday, and Stefan was eliminated in the first match with a score of 146 to 148. Nico, on the other hand, advanced to the semifinals with excellent scores of 149, 149, 149, 148. This earned him the opportunity to shoot in the final spot on Saturday. He lost the gusty semifinal 141 to 143 to India's Mohan Ramswaroop Bhardwaj. He then lost the bronze medal match to American Steve Marsh 141 to 145.
A small experience showed me how important archery is in Korea. On the way to the final venue, we were able to watch the broadcast and profiles of the archers in the matches on state television, and then we were able to watch the matches on a large flat screen in the bus. This competition was something truly special – all the volunteers and staff were extremely polite, even though they spoke almost no English. We still managed to communicate, and I, for my part, was able to get to know the country and its culture a little better during my days off. The organization was incredibly good; there had never been so many buses to choose from before, and the part of town where we were staying was ultra-modern and young.
All in all, it was a great experience. Our two-person team had no problems and everything went smoothly. Except for the red phases at the traffic lights, which were annoyingly long. 
Thank you for the organizational and financial support from the ÖBSV.
Stefan Heincz, May 22, 2022, Seoul
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