The Jefferson Middle School Archery Program hosted the 3rd Annual Champaign Illini Archery Invitational this past Saturday. The main competition took place in the Champaign Park District Leonhard Center gym, and young archers grades 4-12 competed throughout the day in groups of about 60 at a time for. Shooting began at 8 a.m. and continued through 6 p.m., and while ages varied widely in each group competition took place at the school level (elementary vs. elementary, middle school vs. middle school, and high school vs. high school). Participating teams came from all across the state, and no matter the age and the amount of fun they were having, the archers took the competition very seriously.
Archers using the same standard model of compound bow shot from two distances, 10 and 15 meters, and they were each allowed one practice end (a set of five arrows) before shooting three scoring ends. The archers were set up in pairs to shoot at a shared target, and each person had to score their partner’s arrows before pulling their own arrows out of the target. Each target contained ten scoring rings, with the outer ring counting as 1 point and the inner most ring counting as 10. Archers skilled enough to score a perfect end of 50 points (all arrows in the inner ring) got to join the “50 Club”, getting a special announcement and an award button. Additionally, in order to compete, teams had to have at least four members of the opposite sex counting in the scores, which led to a fair equal distribution of male and female archers.
The gym was packed with people at almost all times, and everyone was incredibly enthusiastic about the competition. Coaches instructed their teams, fans cheered between rounds, and teammates regularly checked in with and encouraged one another. Check out pictures of the tournament below, and when you’re done check in at the Jefferson Jaguar Archery page for more information about the Champaign, IIllinois Jefferson Middle School archery program and tournament results!
Below, deep breath before the shot.
Below, some shots didn’t go as well as desired.
Below, Allison Reiling (left) joined the ranks of the “50 Club”.
Below, consulting about a score sheet.
Below, green light for shooting.
Below, requesting a line judge for assistance.
