Aug 29

USA Tops Medal Count at World Archery Field Championships

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Val d'Isere, France - Team USA proved its target archery prowess at the Olympic Games in London, but it flexed its field archery muscle at the recent World Archery Field Championships in Val d’Isere, France, leading the medal count and adding seven medals to its haul for the summer. Considered one of the most successful field events for USA Archery in recent memory, the team turned out consistent performances across barebow, recurve and compound divisions while shooting on ruggedly beautiful terrain in the French Alps.

Barebow archer Alan Eagleton, coming off a team medal win, added to Team USA’s medal count by taking a silver medal. Following a decisive semifinal victory versus Italy’s Giuseppe Seimandi, Eagleton shot against Sebastian Juanola Codina (ESP) in a thriller of a gold medal match that came down to the narrowest of margins. Juanola Codina won the match by a single point 49-48, and Eagleton claimed his second medal of the event.

Olympic medalist Jake Kaminski, coming straight from a four-week stint in London, won a silver medal in his first-ever World Archery Field Championships appearance. He shot against Jean-Charles Valladont (FRA) in the gold medal match. Though Kaminski was strong enough to narrow the gap, it wasn’t quite enough to stop Valladont, who won the match 58-56, giving Kaminski the silver medal for the United States.

Jessie Broadwater shot against Slavko Tursic (SLO) in the gold medal match following consistent, strong performances throughout his earlier matches. Broadwater, who led qualifications earlier in the week, won the match 67-64, taking the title of World Archery Field Champion. Dave Cousins (USA), a multi-time World Champion in his own right, shot against Sander Dolderman (NED) in the bronze medal match after being stopped in the semifinal. Cousins won the bronze medal with a 63-58 victory.

Paige Pearce, who qualified seventh in the two-day ranking event, shot her way through some difficult matches despite being one of the younger competitors in her category at 17 years old. Pearce clinched a semifinal win versus Ulrika Sjowall (SWE), to face a tough competitor in Ivana Buden (CRO) in the gold medal match. Buden won the match 61-58, and Pearce took a silver medal for Team USA by just three points.

In team events, the senior men’s team of Cousins, Eagleton and Kaminski took the gold medal over Finland, 52-50, after shooting their way through victories versus Netherlands and France in the quarters and semis.   The junior jomen’s team of Emily Fischer, Kathryn Fischer, Heather Trafford won the bronze medal after a tough loss to Great Britain in the semifinal. All three members of the junior women’s team are from the same Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) club: South Texas JOAD.

Trafford, a Junior Dream Team graduate, received special permission from the U.S. Naval Academy, where she is currently attending school, to compete on behalf of the United States in France. The World Championships were a family affair for Trafford, with brother Hardy and sister Miriam also competing in the junior recurve categories, and mom Charlene shooting in the barebow group. Together with Heather Koehl and Paige Pearce, Trafford clinched a fourth-place finish for the U.S. senior women’s team.

For complete results, visit http://www.worldarchery.org. Photos from the event are posted at USA Archery’s Facebook page.