KEEN competitors will gather in the market town of Bedale this weekend for the oldest continuous recorded sporting event.

The Antient Silver Arrow was first shot in Scorton, near Richmond in 1673 when the society of Archers was formed and over the years archers across the globe have competed in the annual competition to win what is arguably archery's most coveted title.

This year local lad Tom Fewz, from Northallerton, who is a member of Thirsk Bowmen, and a newcomer to the sport, has organised the event after winning last year's 307th competition.

He's hoping to create history by winning it again as no archer has ever clinched the title two years running.

It’s staged at Bedale High School with 104 archers coming from across the UK competing. Despite it’s huge prestige, and the fact that many of the 44,000 archers across Britain will be gripped to find out the result, Mr Fewz says it’s really not a spectator sport, so there will be no TV cameras, and few spectators.

“It is a really important competition , but even I have to admit archery is not gripping for people watching, so there won’t be mass crowds. But the history is fascinating, we have a gentleman coming, Michael J Leach, from Penzance, who won it in 1948 when he was just 12,” he added.

“They changed the rules after that, making the competition open to over 21’s only, because the winner has to arrange the next year’s event and Michael was too young to buy the alcohol for the competition.

“I am hoping to create history by winning for the second consecutive year, it may possibly have been done previously, but that would have been in the 1700’s sometime and certainly not in the last 200 years. But the weather forecast is not good for Saturday, we will hold the competition because it goes ahead regardless, it’s been held in snow and hail before, but that makes it more down to luck.

“I haven’t had the chance to do too much practice because I’ve been organising the event, but on the day I reckon it’s 95 per cent luck anyway and five per cent pointing the arrow in the right direction,“ added Mr Fewz who only took up archery three years ago.

The winner is the first archer to get the arrow into a three inch diameter black spot from 100yards. An award is also given to the archer who gets his arrow in the red spot, he is declared Lieutenant.

The competition was originally organised to maintain target archery which was in decline following the English Civil War. The 308th meeting of the Antient Silver Arrow will be held on Saturday from 10am.