Stephen shoots for the top to claim Euro title
Perthshire sharpshooter Stephen Havranek was bang on target at the European Field Archery Championships.
And his victory near the city of Arnhem has ticked off a long-term goal of claiming the full-set of titles in the sport.
Stephen, who hails from the small hamlet of Knapp near Inchture, is now a Scottish, UK and Ireland, world and European champion.
The performance in the Netherlands was a solid one in challenging conditions and he was never in danger of missing out on the top prize.
Barebow recurve scores of 444, 471, 514, 469 and 451 resulted in a 2349 total and sent Stephen well clear of secondplaced Paul Meeson from England.
“To have the full set of wins in a single year feels amazing,” Stephen said. “When I first started archery my goal was to try to win the club championships.
“It was only after winning the worlds that I started to think it would be good to go for the European win as well to complete the set.
“For me winning the European Championships felt better than winning the Worlds.
“In Holland the calibre of shooters seemed so much higher and to win so convincingly against a group which included three ex European champions felt amazing.
“The championships were held near Arnhem on what must be the only hill in Holland. There were over 30 of us in the Scottish squad.
“To cater for the number of competitors there were five courses. Three were set in beautiful woodlands on the hill slopes. The other two on the flood plains of the Rhine.
“Shooting conditions were not ideal over the five days with very heavy rain and strong winds.
“On the more exposed courses the wind was so bad we were having to aim completely off the target faces to compensate for the arrows being blown sideways.
“But overall I was delighted with the way I shot in the competition, especially the longer distances. My scores were around 10 points down on what I had hoped for each day due to the weather.
“I went there thinking that I would win but did not think I would do it so convincingly.”
Field Archery is shot at distances ranging from 20 feet to 80 yards and Stephen spent months training for the Europeans.
His cause is helped by having a worldclass training course set-up in his garden.
“Preparations for this competition started properly three months ago,” Stephen explained to the Perthshire Advertiser. “Every day I would shoot for a couple of hours after work and then all day on Sundays.
“As a big competition like this approaches I also start working more on what’s going on in my head.
“Once you get to a certain level in any sport physical ability becomes less important and the mental side of the sport takes over.
“If you don’t believe you are going to win or that your arrow won’t hit the bullseye then it won’t happen.
“Last year to help train for the world championships I built a practice course of over 50 targets around my house.
“The position of the targets was planned to make every shot tricky.
“I believe my success is because I get to practice on a course that is technically far more difficult than any other around.
“My course is now being used regularly by top archers from around the world. Last week it was the Slovenian junior squad.” The Scottish squad at the event
Stephen Havranek has been no stranger to archery success in recent years
While Stephen has successfully completed the full-set, a desire remains to continue to achieve new feats in the world of archery.
Stephen said: “Moving forward my sights are now firmly on the world records.
“I have broken them in training so I know it’s a possibility but to do so when it matters is another thing.
“There are not a lot of big competitions in the next couple of months although next year will be the European Indoor Championships in Northern Ireland and the World Field Championships in Estonia.”