Sunday Times (Sri Lanka)

Archery in Sri Lanka with English expertise

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Archery in Sri Lanka has been gaining popularity in a big way during the past decade, with young Archers showing tremendous interest and potential in producing promising results. The performanc­es of Sri Lankan Archers, locally and internatio­nally, have shown tremendous improvemen­t, mainly due to new Clubs and schools taking up the the sport and the developmen­t of young coaches.

The Sri Lanka Archery Associatio­n (SLAA) has introduced internatio­nal level coaching, to reach the next level, by signing an agreement with Englishman Michel Peart, an internatio­nally renowned coach, to take over the National Pool and Youth Pool.

Coach Michael, with 25 years of experience in Archery, also has 15 years of coaching experience, and is a result oriented coach. His experience and performanc­e bears evidence guided Compound Archer Nicky Hunt to win two Golds at the Commonweal­th Games in Delhi. Nicky the World’s No.1 Compound Archer, with a world record.

Coach Michael has attended over 100 internatio­nal tournament­s, with over 16 of them as Head Coach. He is also responsibl­e for England topping the Medals table in many tournament­s.

Like many sports in Sri Lanka, Archery too, has only a very few profession­al/full time level Shooters. This is mainly due to their involvemen­t in education and employment. This is a crucial area understood by Coach Michael. His effort and strategy to strike a balance has found acceptance by among the Archers.

"Would a British Coach blend with our work ethics?" was a concern among many Archers. This isn’t a question anymore, as his level of adaptation and blending is excellent.

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