The BC Archery Association has named the athletes that will be representing the province at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer, Alta.

And, for some, it came down to a nail-biter.

“All the matches were really close. We had one match that went to a tie and so we went to a one arrow shoot off and it was still a tie. The second arrow shoot off was still tied and it took a third to determine the winner, which is pretty unheard of. It was extremely tight with all the matches,” said Team BC coach Paul Van Tassel.

The process to make Team BC started last January with athletes declaring their intentions. They were required to shoot a number of scores and the best three were taken to determine the top archery athletes in each category. Those 15 athletes then participated in a final selection camp in Oliver, B.C., in late November.

“All the scores were really close all weekend and that just shows that we had a great group of athletes and really found the best,” said Van Tassel. “I’m really excited about the team we put together. We had a long trials period and at the end of it all, I am really happy with the team we have put together. I think everyone is going to be really competitive and we look forward to the Games.”

At the 2015 Canada Winter Games, Team BC earned their first medal in archery — a bronze.

Athletes that will be representing Team BC are:

Adi Shapira is a 16 year old from Vancouver that belongs to the Richmond Archery Club and will represent Team BC in the women’s recurve division. She has been shooting since November 2017. Since then, she won two gold medals at the Kamloops 2018 BC Winter Games for the Vancouver-Coastal region in the match play girls recurve and in two-day aggregate girls recurve. At the 2018 BC Provincial Indoor Championship she took fourth place in her category and won gold in her category at the 2018 JOP (Junior) indoor Championship.

Adam Deane, 17, is from Delta and competes at the Royal City Archers Club in New Westminster. He will represent Team BC in the men’s recurve division. Deane has been shooting since 2016 winning a silver medal at the 2017 JOP (Junior) Indoor Championship, a silver in the two-day aggregate boys recurve and bronze in the match play boys recurve at the Kamloops 2018 BC Winter Games and gold in his category at the 2018 BC Provincial Outdoor Championship.

Emma Chylinski, 18, will represent Team BC in the women’s compound division. She is from North Vancouver and competes out of the North Shore Archers and Semiahmoo Archery Clubs. Shooting since 2012, Chylinski has an amazing record having competed at the Penticton 2016 BC Winter Games, earning gold at the 2018 and 2017 BC Indoor Provincial Championship, holds one BC Indoor record, three BC Outdoor records, gold at the 2017 BC Outdoor Provincial Championship, silver at the 2018 JOP (Junior) Provincial indoor Championship, gold at the 2017 JOP (Junior) Provincial Outdoor Championship and two outdoor records, silver at the 2017 Archery Canada Regional Indoor Championship, gold at the 2018 Archery Canada Field Championship, Gold in the women’s K50 category at the 2018 BC 3D Championship and gold at the 2015 Canada Cup (Western Canadian Championship).

Spencer Gamache, 18, is from Quesnel and competes out of the Quesnel River Archers Club. He will represent Team BC in the men’s compound division. Gamache has been shooting for over 10 years and his recent accomplishments include: gold at the 2018 BC Provincial Outdoor Championship, silver at the 2018 BC Provincial Indoor Championship and gold at the 2017 BC Provincial Indoor Championship. Gamache holds two provincial records at the BC Outdoors. He also won gold in the 2018 JOP (Junior) Indoor Championships and silver at the 2018 JOP (Junior) Outdoor Championship.

Joining Van Tassel on the coaching staff are head coach Linda Price and Aboriginal Apprentice coach Curt Smecher.

About Team BC
Team BC brings together the best athletes, coaches, managers, and mission staff to represent British Columbia at the Canada Summer and Winter Games. Team BC will send a delegation of 320 athletes, coaches, managers, and mission staff to represent British Columbia at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer, February 15 to March 3. Visit Team BC for the latest news and updates.

About BC Archery Association
BC Archery Association is the Provincial Sport Organization (PSO) for archery in British Columbia. They are affiliated nationally withArchery Canadaand internationally withWorld Archery. They provide coaching and judging services and training for local and provincial tournaments, lobby for bowhunting and the ethical practice of ours, the oldest of sports. They are the voice of archery in BC.

About the Canada Games
The Canada Games are a national multi-sport competition with participation from every province and territory in Canada. The Games are held every two years, alternating between winter and summer.The 2019 Canada Winter Gameswill be held February 15 to March 3 in Red Deer, bringing together approximately 3600 athletes, coaches, and managers from every province and territory to compete in 19 sports.

For more information:
Please contact:
Sonia Schina
BC Archery Association executive director
Phone: 778-241-2724 or email:execdirector@archeryassociation.bc.ca