Yabusame

Japanese horseback archery — shoot three wooden targets at full gallop down a 255 m course.

👥1 per team🌤outdoor
Photo · Wikipedia

What is Yabusame?

Yabusame is the traditional Japanese art of horseback archery, developed in the 12th-century Kamakura era as samurai training. An archer in full traditional armour gallops down a 255 m track and shoots three arrows into three wooden targets in quick succession. It survives today as a ceremonial and demonstration event at Shinto shrines.

Quick facts

Category

Equestrian Sports

Type

Individual

Players

1 per team

Where played

outdoor

Country of origin

🇯🇵 Japan

Estimated origin

12th-century Kamakura Japan (samurai training)

Olympic

No

Popularity

niche

Sources & provenance

Last verified 2026-08-24.verified