Lisa Barbelin

Lore & Background

Barbelin trained at the Société de tir de Dieuze in Dieuze, Moselle, and in Auvergne. She began earning international medals at youth level, including a third-place finish in the team event at the 2017 World Youth Archery Championships. In 2019, she attended a 10-day workshop in Gwangju, South Korea, where she was trained by former Olympic champion Ki Bo-bae. During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in France, she trained in her parents' garden in Ley, Moselle.

In June 2021, Barbelin won the recurve event at the European Archery Championships, becoming the first French woman to win that title since Bérengère Schuh in 2008. This victory made her the number one ranked women's archer, though she was overtaken later that month by Deepika Kumari. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she finished 13th in the ranking round and was eliminated in the round of 8. She later won bronze in the women's team event at the 2021 World Archery Championships.

At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Barbelin secured a bronze medal in the women's individual event by defeating Jeon Hun-young 6–4. She was also part of the French women's team that was eliminated in the round of 8. Barbelin is from Ley, Moselle, studies chemistry at Sorbonne University, and is an amateur pianist.

Reader's Guide

Lisa Barbelin's career marks a significant resurgence for French women's recurve archery. Her victory at the 2021 European Archery Championships ended a 13-year drought for French women in that event, and her subsequent rise to world number one highlighted her as a leading competitor. Her bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics was historic, as she became the first French female archer to win an individual Olympic medal. This achievement, achieved on home soil, places her among the most notable figures in French archery history. Her path included development through youth championships, training under a former Olympic champion, and adapting training during the pandemic. Her success has brought renewed attention to the sport in France and demonstrates the effectiveness of her training background at the Société de tir de Dieuze and in Auvergne.

Did You Know?

• She won the French women's Olympic selection test event in February 2020.
• During the COVID-19 lockdown, she trained in her parents' garden in Ley, Moselle.
• She is an amateur pianist and studies chemistry at Sorbonne University.