YANKTON, US – The qualifications have wrapped at the 2022 World Archery Field Championships, with 6 compound archers taking to the shooting line to try and earn the highest spot. The first day of qualifications, Tuesday, saw them shoot on 24 unmarked, where the archers do not know the distance. Rain was a continual factor on the first day, as well as steep technical courses. Wednesday brought on the second day of qualifications, which saw them shoot at targets where the distance was known. 

After the first day of qualifications, Cory Smandych, the only Canadian archer in the compound men’s category, sat 26th, with a score of 368. He improved his score on the second day with a 377 and brought his total to 745, and his final qualification to 26th place. As only the top 22 archers will be moving on, Smandych will not advance in the competition. 

Fiona McClean was the sole archer in the compound women division and earned a final qualification spot of 14th. This was the result of the combination of both McClean’s scores from both days, 351 on Tuesday and 373 on Wednesday, totaling 724. She will advance to shoot in Pool D; her first match will be against Alex Misis Olivares from Spain on October 6 @ 2:45 pm local time (3:45 pm EST).

The Canadians shot in the compound U21 men’s category: Dustin Watson, Jacob Bourassa, and Brady Klassen. Watson shot a strong score of 383 on the first day and on Wednesday, he earned a score of 382, which totaled his score to 765 and landed him 6th in the qualifications. It is currently not known who Watson will shoot against, as he must await the results of the two prior Pool D matches. At his first World Championship event, Bourassa shot a 369 and a 373 on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, which combined to a score of 742 and the 10th place. He will shoot against Austrian Mario Hehenberger in his first match in Pool A on October 6 @ 10:30 am local time (11:30 am EST). Klassen landed the 15th spot; his two scores were 344 and 341. He will then face off against Albin Hägglund (SWE) in the first match of Pool D on October 6 @ 9:45 am local time (10:45 am EST). 

“It was awesome, I shot a lot of great shots,” says Watson at the end of the second day of qualifiers. “I shot with two amazing groups of guys, we had a lot of fun. It was a super challenging course: a lot of good hill shots, some really good cuts. I want to say thank you to the host committee, it’s been a lot of fun [so far].”

The final category that saw Canadian participation was the compound U21 women’s division. Tasjia Boyle was the sole archer representing Canada and at this event, her first World Championship, she saw a score of 309 on her first day and 327 on her second day, which meant that she landed in 5th place in her group. 

“It was a lot less stressful than I thought it was going to be,” Boyle commented after the qualification rounds finished. “[The ranges] were a lot more angled and there was quite a bit more hiking than what I’ve done. It was quite fun and I liked meeting new people.”

Boyle and Watson will join forces to compete in the mixed team event, shooting against Romania in the first round on October 7 @ 9:45 am local time (10:45 am EST).

The competition continues on Thursday, October 6 with the elimination rounds.  

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For more information, please contact:

Zoe Meil, Communications & Safe Sport Coordinator

zmeil@archerycanada.ca

(613) 260-2113 ext. 3