Going for gold

Eighty-eight archers from thirteen schools/clubs from all over Namibia gathered in Windhoek for the annual St George’s Shoot.

Archers from grade 4 through to grade 12 tested their aim and perseverance during the 3 Bulls Eye rounds on target faces and 1 2D/3D Animal rounds. The shoot was ended by the AAG (Adult Archery Group) of 17 trying to beat their sons/ daughters or students at their game!
The event was enjoyed by all and many made sure that their arrows hit the desired spot. Preparation for the NASP® Africa Champion-ship will be in Cape Town from 1 – 3 May at Mystico Equestrian Centre where Namibia will be represented by 16 members of the Namibian Team, 16 members of the Development Team and for the first time, 14 members of the AAG team.
So, between scoring and taking photos, running a range and making sure everyone is safe, completed forms and certified copies were being collected and filed to make sure all team members had all the right documents to cross the border.
At the prize giving, it was clear that the girls were giving the boys a good run for their money. The Senior Girls beat the Senior Boys “by far” with scores of 863 and 860 out of a possible 900 on target faces. When it came to the Animal round, the Senior Boys were ahead with scores of 289 and 282 out of a possible 300. Top archers shot 70 10s during the competition, quite an accomplishment, considering that the bows were shot without any means of aiming and the 10 is about 10cm in diameter at distances of 10m and 15m.
As St George’s is celebrating its centenary this year, archers who shot a full score back to back – 100 points, were rewarded with a little something – a target and a 2D animal face – to make practicing easier. Well done to Leonise Human from Gobabis Gymnasium and Elsjen Wilders from Windhoek Gymnasium.
Thank you to the St George’s Tuck shop for keeping everyone well fed and hydrated. The team form Afro Pumps, who always help setting up the range and clearing up on Sundays, as well as maintaining a lot of the equipment, deserve a medal for their assistance. Thank you to all the archers for enduring the sun and still behaving sportsmanlike and their parents who often travel late at night or very early in the morning to make sure these competitions are well attended.Thank you to Butt Archery Supplies for making sure all bows are ready for hours in any weather, fingers are protected and arrows are in tip-top shape.
Lastly to the office “staff”, who made sure all scores were captured efficiently and correctly, so that everyone knew where they were standing within 30 minutes of the last arrow flying for a round.
St George’s wished everyone many happy hours practicing till the NLU shoot in Windhoek on 30 March at the Hage Geingob Rugby Stadion.