Photo Credit: World Archery

OTTAWA, ON – Archery Canada is pleased to announce the hiring of the new Junior National Recurve Coach, Dr. Soha Mahmoud.  Dr. Mahmoud competed for Egypt at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and earned her PhD in Sport Biomechanics at University of Alexandria in 2007. She has achieved the highest level of coach certification from World Archery and has recently completed her Canadian Competition Development certification with the NCCP.

Dr. Mahmoud had been residing in Winnipeg with her family for the past two years, but has recently moved to reside in Southern Ontario, and will work primarily out of the new Archery Canada Center in Cambridge, ON.  She will be taking over the responsibilities previously under the System Pathway Coach, Joan McDonald, and will report to Archery Canada’s High Performance Director, Alan Brahmst.  McDonald and Dr. Mahmoud have begun working together to ensure a smooth transition of athletes, responsibilities, and the overall development programming.

“Soha is a perfect fit for our program, at a time when we are building towards the next two Olympic cycles, Paris and LA.  Our priority is to further develop existing Next Gen athletes, identify new talent and establish a robust athlete pathway,” commented Brahmst, on the appointment. “Her coaching experience in the U.A.E. and at the World Archery Middle Eastern Center, along with her significant sport science expertise, will help to accelerate our program towards meeting its performance goals. This is an important step in further building out Archery Canada’s coaching capacity and expertise and for supporting Shawn Riggs as the National Coach.”

“I am excited to take on this new role and I’m delighted to have the opportunity to contribute to the performance programs of Archery Canada,” offered Dr. Mahmoud. “We have a lot of opportunity to build a strong team for 2028 over the next 7 years, and I also look forward to supporting Shawn as he focuses on the Paris Olympics, which are less than 3 years away.”

The Junior National Coach will be accountable for directing and building out Archery Canada’s high performance next generation program and the associated athlete pathway structures. In alignment, the role will focus on identifying and developing athletes in preparation for major international competition and to support the national coach in the ongoing development of high performance programs through the 2024 quadrennial.