OTTAWA, ON – Ahead of a busy international competitive season, Archery Canada is pleased to announce the 13 athletes named to the 2023 National Compound Squad.
The male archers named to the squad are:
- Austin Taylor (MB)
- Christopher Perkins (ON)
- Cameron Palichuk (AB)
- Andrew Fagan (ON)
- Jordan Adachi (BC)
- Tommy Plante (QC)
- Alex Ignatius (BC)
- Dustin Watson (ON)
- Tristan Moran (SK)
- Conditional Selection: Jamie Brehaut (AB), Robbie Nott (ON)
The female archers named to the squad are:
- Kaity Horlock (ON)
- Katie Roth (ON)
The men’s side of the squad boasts a mix of veteran and younger archers, with a wide range of experience between them. Dustin Watson, the youngest member on the team but one who brings a great deal of experience, was recently crowned the U21 compound men’s champion at the 2022 World Archery Field Championships. Christopher Perkins, a well-known archer who mainly competes on the American 3D circuit, has been more active on this side of the border recently, including his bronze medal win for Canada at the World Games last summer. They, alongside other veteran archers Austin Taylor, Andrew Fagan, Jordan Adachi, and Tristan Moran, will lead the squad through a busy competition season that includes World Championships and Pan Am Games. Both of those events are key for the compound program; the dates are already circled in the calendar.
While Cameron Palichuk competed for Canada in 2022, he is still relatively new to international competition, and Archery Canada looks forward to watching him shoot this year. He was part of the group that secured a full men’s compound quota for the Pan Am Games in late 2022 at the Pan American Championships. The organization also welcomes Tommy Plante and Alex Ignatius to the squad, who will have a chance to shoot internationally for the first time.
Kaity Horlock has attended two World Archery Youth Championships, the first in Yankton (2015) and then again in Rosario (2017). Katie Roth is another veteran who has represented Canada at three World Championships – youth in Legnica (2011), senior in Copenhagen (2015) and ‘s-Hertogenbosch (2019). They both also have lots of experience at the national level; the organization looks forward to watching them shoot for Canada in the upcoming season.
Fiona McClean, a regular member of the compound squad for many years, has decided to retire from World Archery target events and is instead focusing her aim onto the next World Archery Field Championships, which will come to Lac La Biche in 2024. Fiona is still someone to watch as she hunts for a spot on the World Archery Field Championships team and the organization is excited to see what she does between now and then.
Jamie Brehaut and Robbie Nott were approved for conditional selection by the Selection Approval Panel as alternates to the 2023 compound squad.
“We are excited to announce the 13 athletes that may represent Canada at international events in 2023,” said Ryan Van Berkel, Archery Canada’s Compound Coordinator. “The male group has a good balance of experienced and emerging competitors, and we expect success from the teams heading to World Championships and Pan American Games later this year. On the women’s side, we are excited about the opportunity to grow our team in 2023, adding depth to our women’s program and supporting our existing athletes.”
These athletes are the individuals who have qualified to be selected for Senior World Archery events in 2023. The biggest event for the squad is the World Archery Championships in Berlin this summer. To wrap up the competitive season, the Pan Am Games will provide a continental stage on which the archers will compete. The men’s team has already qualified a full quota and the women will strive to do so in other qualification events this year. Canada strives to field a full team of athletes for both events, which would promise lots of exciting archery.
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For more information, please contact:
Zoe Meil, Communications & Safe Sport Coordinator
(613) 260-2113 ext. 3