Recurve or Olympic Bow: 
The only type of bow allowed in Olympic competition, as yet. Its limbs curve away from the archer. This is the direct descendant of the bows of antiquity, differing only in the materials used and refinements. The force required to pull a recurve bow increases directly with the distance pulled.

Bow handles (risers) are made of aluminum alloys and are machined for a combination of strength and lightness. Some bow handles are made of a magnesium and aluminum mixture which is heated to liquid form and poured into a mold. Once cooled, it is cleaned, final machined and painted. Some lower cost, childrens bows have wood risers, as do some rather expensive, hand made bows. 

Bow limbs are generally constructed of man-made materials, such as fiberglass, carbon and synthetic foam. The limbs store the energy of the draw and release it to the arrow. The string and the limbs are commonly removed from the riser when the bow is not in use, allowing for easy storage of the "knocked-down" bow.

Bows have stabilizers to reduce torque (twisting) in the arrows upon release. They also have sights to aid in aiming and rests to help align the shot.  Many bow strings are made of either "Fast Flight", a hydrocarbon product that also has medical and other uses, or "Kevlar", the material used to make bullet-proof vests. The important point to be made about the string is that it must not stretch under normal environmental conditions, as that would change the bows pull weight and make consistency impossible.

A layer of string material called the serving is placed where the arrow is nocked to snugly match the notch on the arrow, and a small ring is permanently placed on the serving to mark where the arrow rests when nocked. A small button, called the kisser button, is often used to assure that the back end of the arrow is always pulled back to the proper, repeatable anchor point. When properly drawn, the kisser button rests right between the lips. 

An arrow is pulled back to the anchor point using the middle three fingers of the draw hand. These fingers are often covered with a glove or a leather "tab" which protects the fingers. A tab may have a metal shelf built in so that the two fingers on either side of the arrow do not squeeze it.

On recurve bows a clicker is a small, spring-loaded lever that is held out away from its resting point by the arrow. When the arrow is drawn back to exactly the same point each time, the clicker slips past the tip of the arrow, producing an audible "click", which tells the archer he has the arrow at the same, repeatable release point. This causes very close to the same amount of tension to be used on every shot, so the arrow flight is the same. 

A sight allows the archer, when the arrow is properly drawn, to line the bow up with the center of the target by eye. The sight generally has adjustments in up-down and left-right dimensions with caliper-style read outs so that ageing equipment, weather, temperature and distance to the target may be accommodated. Olympic archery allows for sights which do not have lenses or electronics associated with them.

Arm guards and chest protectors protect the skin from string burn, as well as provide a low-resistance surface that the string may skim over easily upon release. A pair of binoculars or a sighting scope allows the archer to see the arrows in the target, and thereby make corrections to the sight as required.

A quiver to hold arrows and other pariphernalia completes the archer's accessories.