CHULA VISTA, Calif. – Some of the nation’s top para athletes took to the field last week in preparation for the 2022 World Archery Para Championships to be held in Dubai later this month.
Held at the Easton Archery Center of Excellence, at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center, the prep camp provided archers with the opportunity to practice against each other in a competitive setting and put their skills to the test. It also provided athletes with valuable time to prep their equipment for Dubai.
“Camp was amazing! Several of us worked on learning to tune our bow and arrow tuning. Knowing your equipment is ready to roll is a huge confidence boost. We did a couple of 72 arrow qualification practices, but our main focus was on eliminations, match play and team simulations,” said two-time Paralympian, Lia Coryell.
Next month’s event has been long awaited for para archers, and the prep camp offers them the opportunity to fine-tune their skills leading up to the event. Many archers living in colder climates used the prep camp for an opportunity to shoot outdoors and to increase strength and endurance.
“It gave us time to get outside, get together, get the adrenaline flowing and get some arrows downrange, so it’s not a complete surprise when you're trying to shoot World Championships in February,” said Ben Thompson, the reigning world champion. “It was mainly just trying to get set up and find my rhythm again.”
Thompson explained how this affected his training process and preparation for Dubai, “It’s really more mental than anything else because you are the one that everyone is chasing down. There’s no sneaking up on anybody.”
The 2022 World Archery Para Championships will be held Feb. 19-27, rescheduled from its original 2021 date. This means that the next championship event for para archers will be held in consecutive years; the 2023 Czech Republic Championships will be the primary qualifier for the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris.
“I’m excited and confident that we are bringing a stellar team to Dubai! This is my 4th World Championship team, and it’s about time for me to show up and throw down my best shots,” commented Coryell regarding the upcoming event. “My goal is to gold medal in Dubai. Straight-up gold medal. I’m gunning for that national anthem,” she continued.
Just prior to the start of camp, several team members arrived early to compete at USA Archery’s 53rd Indoor Nationals. Martha Chavez broke both the 18m and 2x18m national records for compound women’s open with 550/600 and 1099/1200 and Coryell broke both W1 national and continental records with 553 and 1097.
Learn more about the 2022 World Archery Para Championships and follow all the Team USA Archery action next month at www.usarchery.org.
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