A junior archer from Yorkshire has been invited by USA Archery to compete at the JOAD Championships in Alabama.
Joe Fairburn, 13, shoots both field and target archery and received the invitation after his father Colin got into a discussion with Olympian Rick McKinney and USA Archery regarding their Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) Programme, and the stages of junior archery development. The JOAD Championships are held every year and form part of the USA National Championships. However, Alabama is a long way from Yorkshire.
Colin says, “As this was unfunded, it wasn’t a straightforward matter as it would mean us finding funds for not just Joe to travel but also me to accompany him. In the end we decided to tentatively commit, and Rick suggested that we try ‘crowd funding’ the trip via the Internet. This we did and we successfully raised 92 per cent of the money to fund Joe’s part.”
Joe adds, “I am very excited at the prospect of going to Alabama. It has been a long seven months or so since the official invitation and now that the trip is only a matter of a few weeks away I am totally focused on my preparation. Although I will be missing the UK Junior National Championships, this is a great opportunity for me to experience a major championships abroad with a far larger number of juniors competing. The travel, heat and different shooting conditions will be a big test for me which will help me in my future development.”