Isle of Man archer Damon Warr, of Bowderyn Vannin Field Archery Club, is travelling to South Korea to compete in the 2026 Korea Ulsan World Traditional Archery Championship.

The competition is one of the world’s leading events celebrating heritage archery.

Warr will represent the United Kingdom as part of the UK Traditional Archers’ International Association (UK TAIA) team, the national body responsible for promoting traditional and indigenous archery across the British Isles.

Warr will compete using a traditional Korean bow, reflecting the cultural roots of the championship’s flagship discipline, the 145 metre Korean Kungdo target.

‘I feel both humbled and privileged to be able to represent the Isle of Man and the UK at Ulsan with UK-TAIA. It is a dream come true.’ Warr said.

The championship, organised by the World Traditional Archery Federation (WTAF) in partnership with the Korea National Archery Association, brings together hundreds of competitors from dozens of nations.

According to WTAF, athletes from across the world from Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas will contest the event.

Competitors shoot across four historic disciplines, each representing a distinct cultural lineage:145m Korean Kungdo target, 90m Hungarian Tarsca shield, 70m Turkish Puta target and 30m Kazakh Zhamby target.

These target types form the backbone of the championship’s identity, ‘uniting archers through shared heritage while celebrating national differences.’

Tournament schedule

The official programme begins this Thursday (October 29), with athlete arrivals and transfers from Incheon International Airport.

Equipment inspection, practice sessions and the opening ceremony take place the next day, followed by three days of qualification rounds.

The main tournament — including the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals - is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, with the finals and awards ceremony taking place the following day.