Türkiye’s mixed recurve duo of Mete Gazoz and Elif Berra Gökkır delivered a commanding performance on home soil on Saturday, sweeping France 6-0 in the final to win gold at the 2026 European Outdoor Archery Championships in Antalya.
Competing at the Antalya 100th Year Archery Facilities, the pair combined precision and composure throughout the tournament, capping their run with a straight-sets victory that underscored their growing chemistry and Türkiye’s rising depth in recurve archery.
Gazoz, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion and 2023 world title winner, said the championship offered a valuable benchmark ahead of upcoming global events, noting that Türkiye reached multiple finals across categories. He also added a bronze medal in the men’s individual recurve event to his tally.
The 26-year-old highlighted the mixed team partnership as a defining takeaway from the competition, pointing to trust and communication as the foundation of their success. He described Gökkır as a strong and disciplined partner, saying their understanding on the shooting line made the result feel like a natural outcome rather than a surprise. He also expressed confidence that the duo can anchor Türkiye’s mixed team ambitions for years to come.
For Gökkır, just 19, the championship marked a breakthrough moment. Alongside the mixed team gold, she secured her first senior European individual medal, a bronze in the women’s recurve event, strengthening her status as one of Türkiye’s most promising young archers.
She called the mixed team title a key milestone and a major confidence boost ahead of future targets, including the World Championships and the Olympics, while stressing her ambition to eventually claim individual European gold.
Türkiye’s women’s team finished fourth in recurve, while the men’s team narrowly missed the podium, rounding out a tournament that reinforced both progress and remaining gaps.
