Four women’s recurve national team members and one para archer are set to travel to Monterrey, MEX for the Pan American Archery Championships this week   The Continental Qualifying Tournament for the Olympic Games will also run in conjunction with the Championships.  Canadian Women will compete in the para and able bodied competitions, with the opportunity to secure a single spot for this summer’s games in both categories.

In women’s individual recurve, Virginie Chénier of Laval, Que., Tania Edwards of Aurora, Ont, Stephanie Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., will compete in both the Pan American Archery Championships and Continental Qualifier.  Mariessa Pinto of Abbotsford, B.C. will compete in the Pan American Championships and be on site to step in as alternate for the Continental Qualification Tournament if needed.   Veteran team member Karen Van Nest will be competing in both events in the para category.

Canada has already qualified one men’s recurve place for Tokyo 2020, following the performances at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, however, is still seeking to secure at least one spot each for women’s recurve and in Para Archery. The final qualifying event for both individuals and teams, where countries can upgrade to full three-athlete quotas in each gender, will take place alongside the third stage of the 2021 Hyundai Archery World Cup in Paris, France June 21-27. For Para Archery, this final qualification opportunity will take place at the Czech Para Archery World Ranking Event to be held in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, July 3-10.

The past year has been a challenge for our archers, with many restrictions in place due to the ongoing public health concerns due to COVID-19. The athletes have had limited opportunity to compete in the past 12 months, as most competitions in Canada and abroad were cancelled. Attending competition at this time presents further challenges with travel and the convergence of individuals from multiple countries.  Canada is taking additional precaution on top of those being implemented by the organizing committee to mitigate the risks for the team and support staff. Canada recently hosted two camps which have been run under enhanced health protocols, including significant social distancing, constant sanitization, repeated COVID-19 testing and mask-wearing at all times when not on the shooting line.

Duncan Crawford and Linda Price will be the coaches accompanying the 5 athletes. Both Crawford and Price are being supported by a Monterrey resident in a management capacity for any additional safety planning prior to and during the event. “Our women have been preparing for this event for the last 12 months, and are more ready now than they have ever been”, suggests Price. “Members of the Women’s team have come together to train in preparation multiple times over the last few months. In practice they are regularly achieving personal best scores which puts them in a great position to bring home an Olympic Quota spot. Without a doubt the entire program is rooting for them.”

For all of the athletes there is a lot riding on the results of these Championships in Mexico. Should an athlete’s performance place them sufficiently to earn a quota place for Canada at the Games, it will also result in their automatic nomination to this summer’s team.  “It’s very exciting to be returning to International competition,” according to Duncan Crawford, Archery Canada’s Head Coach, Paralympic Team. “Despite not taking a full squad to this event we’re very confident for a positive outcome. In a time with so much uncertainty and challenges around training, we can’t wait to be back on the field of play!”

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Schedule

• Tuesday, March 23:               Qualification
• Wednesday March 24:          Mixed team finals
• Thursday, March 25:             Team finals
• Friday, March 26:                   Paralympic qualification and para finals
• Saturday, March 27:              Olympic qualification
• Sunday, March 28:                 Individual finals

How to Follow
Live scores will be available on the World Archery website and there’ll be coverage on World Archery’s digital platforms throughout the competition.

World Archery’s YouTube channel will stream the following sessions:
Live: Olympic qualification – 27 March, starting at 13h00 CST (local)
Live: Compound finals – 28 March, starting at 9h00 CST (local)
Live: Recurve finals – 28 March, starting at 13h00 CST (local)