Archer shoots for world title
For Southland archer Robert Peterson it’s now or never to shoot for a world title.
Peterson, of Invercargill, has been selected in the New Zealand team for the 2015 world archery championships.
Peterson will compete in the men’s recurve discipline at the championships, to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in July.
The New Zealand team is made up of two men and two women, who will compete in the compound bow and recurve bow disciplines.
Peterson’s run-up to selection started about October last year and he was notified that he had made the team four weeks ago, he said.
The selection committee took into account the performances of archers throughout the country.
No stranger to international competitions, in 2011 Peterson went with the New Zealand team to the world championships in Turin, Italy, and also attended a World Cup event in China.
The 53-year-old said his age was not a barrier and could even be an advantage over younger competitors.
On competition day shooting was about 20 per cent physical strength and 80 per cent mental strength, giving seasoned shooters the advantage, he said.
‘‘You’ve got to be able to shoot your last arrow as relaxed as your first one.’’
Now was the time for a shot at a world title, as his shooting was the best it had been, he said.
In March last year Peterson broke a national record that had stood for 15 years. This was despite a shoulder injury that forced him to make a change to his equipment and technique.
He practises every day for two hours, supplemented by weight training three days a week.
Between his busy job at the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter and training he said he wouldn’t be able to manage without his wife who was his biggest and only fan.
‘‘Things have started to come together nicely.’’