VI Archers at the Pan AM Juniors and Masters Championships Day 1
The first day of the Pan Am Juniors and Masters Championships has wrapped up, and all archers have been sorted into their elimination brackets. Representing the Virgin Islands, we have Winnette Lawrence in the 50-plus Female Compound Division, Valentine Zarenbelnyj in the Under 18 Male Compound Division, and Ava Ghiorse in the Under 15 Recurve Women category.
This championship is the largest of its kind since 1996, with approximately 235 archers gathering in the city of San Salvador. El Salvador, situated in Central America, is known for being part of the “Ring of Fire,” boasting 23 active volcanoes. The volcanic activity and sulfur outlets sometimes give the city a hazy atmosphere, which was the environment our archers faced during the qualification day. The weather was humid and hot.
Winnette Lawrence, despite her nerves, focused on her mental strength and achieved a new career average of 595, averaging 8.26. She expressed her anticipation for the elimination day.
Ava Ghiorse, our under 15 compound female, was thrilled to compete in her first World Archery competition and eager to get on the line and shoot. Though she had experience in the Vegas Shoot, this event was different. On her first day of eliminations, she surpassed her goal of 7.0 by averaging 7.1. Despite a moment of target panic due to her bow being hit by her lane mate, she recovered quickly and hit two 9’s directly after.
Valentine Zarenbelnyj, only shooting for 6 months, also shared his thoughts on the competition. Having only competed in the Vegas Shoot previously, he was happy and relaxed, taking his time between shots. He mentioned that qualification day was good, acknowledging improvement from practice. The different environment posed some challenges, but he aimed to do his best for elimination day. Surpassing his goal of 7.0, he scored a 7.9, knowing he could perform even better.
While these are national records for these two athletes, world records were also broken on qualification day. Tatyana Muntyan and Bruce Arnold, representing the US Virgin Islands, broke the 50-plus Recurve Mixed Team record, scoring 1228 points.
Qualification day was indeed filled with excitement and displays of tenacity. One notable event involved Liam Lee of the USA, who fell sick on the line during the first end of the qualification round. Despite this, with just 89 seconds remaining, he returned to the line and shot all six arrows into the 10 ring. Liam finished with a score of 699 out of 720, averaging 9.70 in the Under 15 Male Recurve division, securing first place in Qualifications.
Archery demands tenacity, mindset, and fortitude. It’s a sport for those who can hold their ground in the heat, in the haze until the last arrow is shot. We look forward to elimination day
We have to truly thank our sponsors some of them are listed below. Ministry of Education and Culture, Nagico, the Olympic Committee, ATU BVI, O’Neal Webster, Crystal Clear Marine, Fast Ferry, Native Son, Martin Kenney, Yates Construction, Joma and Leverick Bay. Without the support of the community, we cannot do what we have done.
