Gold medal winning archer Katie Jennings has her sights set high
Eighteen-year-old Newry archer Katie Jennings has her sights set on the 2028 Olympic Games and becoming World Number One, after she won gold medals in Slovenia and Lilleshall, England.
Katie took up archery after a family holiday to Donegal when she was eight years old. Having briefly taken a break, she went back three years ago and enjoyed tremendous success by winning the Indoor and Field U18 Northern Ireland Championship titles.
The next step for her was to represent Great Britain on the international stage, which she did recently by qualifying for the European Youth Cup in Slovenia.
This, she told the Newry Reporter, was the starting point for her future goals.
“To be selected by Team GB to shoot at the European Youth Cup was a huge honour as I have been working hard for the last year to get scores to be selected,” she said.
“It is the starting point for my journey of shooting internationally and to one day be World Number One.”
‘To win a gold medal was a dream moment’
Not only was it a huge achievement to be selected to represent GB, but Katie went all the way and won a gold medal.
She undertook the challenge of competing in a mixed team, alongside Max Pelling, which was more difficult but ultimately more rewarding, as it is the style used in the Olympic Games.
If that wasn’t enough, Katie then brought home another gold medal – this time representing Northern Ireland in Lilleshall.
“I felt so proud to have shot so well in the qualifications and to have got a PB which meant I got to choose whether to shoot in the girls team or the mixed team,” she said.
“The mixed team was a more competitive field but as this is the style chosen for the Olympics I thought long term that this was the better option to raise my profile.
“To get into the gold medal match was more than I could have imagined and to actually win was an amazing feeling and proved that all the hard work had been worth it. As it was my first ever international there were no expectations on me, and it was only to get experience. So, to actually win a gold medal was a dream moment.
“To then return to England and win the gold medal for Northern Ireland was the perfect ending and the most amazing feeling.”
The gold medals were Katie’s reward for all of her hard work, and she detailed the level of training and expense involved in her sport. “I have to train four times a week with competitions most weekends.
“I also travel to England every month for GB training which is a huge expense. There is a huge financial impact on the training, equipment and travel as most of the international competitions are self funded so I’m looking for a local company to sponsor my journey.”
As she continues to go from strength to strength, her most recent successes have instilled belief and she’s ambitious for the future. “The end goal is to make it to the Olympics and to be World Number One,” she said.
“I have to get to England more now to try to compete in more competitions and get more experience.”