Warringah Archers Perform Strongly
at the ACT Field Championships
Warringah Archers had a strong showing at the ACT Field Championships in Canberra over the weekend of 9 and 10 May, with four club members competing in the World Archery 24 Target Unmarked and Marked Field event.
Field archery is one of the more technically demanding forms of the sport. Rather than shooting on a flat target range, archers move through a course and shoot at targets set at varying distances, angles and elevations. In marked field, the distance to each target is known.
In unmarked field, archers must judge the distance before taking the shot, adding another layer of skill and decision-making to the round. For anyone unfamiliar with the format, Archery Australia has a useful overview here: A Guide to Field Archery
The ACT event was also an important lead-in to the National Field Championships, which will be held in South Australia from 21 to 24 May. All four Warringah Archers competitors will be travelling to South Australia to compete at the national event.
Jack Chambers-McLean delivered an outstanding performance in the Male Compound division. Jack, who previously represented Australia at the World Field Championships as a youth archer, claimed gold with a huge 414 in the unmarked round and 395 in the marked round, giving him a combined total of 809. His unmarked score is also listed as a potential State and National record, pending confirmation. Jack was also eligible to claim his Gold World Archery Arrowhead award.
In the Female Compound division, Warringah was represented by Eve Whitear and Alyssa Mollema. Eve secured gold with scores of 388 in the unmarked round and 375 in the marked round, finishing with a combined total of 763. Her results were also significant from a records perspective, with multiple potential State and National records listed against her performances. Eve also obtained her World Archery Black and White Arrowhead award, missing the next level by just a single point.
Potential Records
Several performances from the weekend have also been listed as potential records, pending confirmation:
| Archer | Class | Division | Round | Old Record | New Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eve Whitear | U21 | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 213 | 388 |
| Eve Whitear | Open | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 371 | 388 |
| Jack Chambers-McLean | Open | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 400 | 414 |
| Eve Whitear | U21 | Compound | WA Field 24 Marked, Red peg | 315 | 375 |
| Archer | Class | Division | Round | Old Record | New Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eve Whitear | U21 | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 368 | 388 |
| Eve Whitear | Open | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 385 | 388 |
| Jack Chambers-McLean | Open | Compound | WA Field 24 Unmarked, Red peg | 411 | 414 |
Alyssa Mollema continued her return to shooting with a strong and consistent weekend, scoring 354 in the unmarked round and 352 in the marked round for a combined total of 706. Her performance secured the silver medal in the Female Compound division.
In the 50+ Male Barebow Recurve division, Jon Whitear claimed gold with scores of 264 and 195, finishing with a combined total of 459. Jon also achieved his World Archery Grey Arrowhead Field Award and an Australian Field Star award up to 260.
The weekend’s results underline the strength of Warringah Archers across compound and barebow field divisions, and provide an encouraging platform ahead of the National Field Championships later this month. Congratulations to Jack, Eve, Alyssa and Jon on their performances, their medals, and their continued representation of the club at state and national level.