Far from being confined to the world of Robin Hood and William Tell, the UCD Archery Club provides a vibrant and active outlet for a sport growing in popularity. At the beginning of last year, the club opened their membership to 220 members and, due to high demand, increased its membership to 259 in the second semester. The Archery Club competes in the Intervarsity League, which includes five indoor competitions and four outdoor competitions, which are hosted over the summer months. For those at beginner level, the club organises small friendly competitions.
While competitions may take the club from Cork, Belfast or Galway on a regular week with no competitions, the Archery Club runs regular trainings during the week for those of varying levels of archery skills. The club can boast a UCD Sustainability Award for its efforts in revamping equipment to promote environmental friendliness, inclusivity and sustainability. Aside from its sustainability accolades, the Archery Club has been home to some of the most prominent talents in Irish archery in recent years. Both James Ryan and Karolina Rozhnova have competed nationally, while Carl McCaffrey, who served as Captain from 2017-2018, has competed at a European Grand Prix, two European Championships and qualifiers for the Olympic Games.
We were delighted to sit down with last year’s Captain and this year’s President, Moya Silke, to find out a little bit more about the Archery Club. Moya had been involved in archery prior to coming to UCD and rose through the ranks, serving as Athlete Protection Officer, Captain in 3rd and now President. Moya highlighted the social aspect as one substantial benefit of the club, fondly recalling a post-Students’ National Competition karaoke meet-up among the competitors gathering in Cork. Moya also noted that while archery is an individual sport, there is no lack of camaraderie among the members of the club, who provide a great network of support after tough performances and praise after successes.
Darragh Sinnott -Sports Editor