Two Werribee archers have come home with medals from the recent Trans Tasman challenge.
Peyton Jarosz and Lilly Helleren were part of the Australian team that competed at the event which is held every two years.
The archers compete in a 720 round, individual matchplay and teams matchplay.
The 720 round is to get rankings for each archer to find them a teammate in teams matchplay and it decides who they verse first in individual matchplay.
It’s the 17th time this event has been held.
Helleran came home from the event with a gold and bronze medal.
She finished with gold in the ranking round and bronze in the individual match play event.
“To get two medals at my first ever international competition was an amazing experience,” she said.
“My first medal was from the ranking round which I had tied with a competitor.
“To be able to have won the tie break was something I didn’t expect but something I couldn’t be happier about.”
Helleren said she was happy with her performance. She said it was a very different experience than competing at competitions at home.
“I had to adapt to the extra pressure while keeping my form in place,” she said.
“I am very happy about how I was able to do this as I was able to keep my nerves under control when it mattered.”
Helleren will continue practicing as she looks to move up into the under-18 division.
Jarosz came away with a silver and bronze medal.
“Coming home with those two medals was one of the best feelings I’ve had in my archery career,” she said.
“I had put so much time and effort into training and it paid off with my results.
“In 2023 I competed in my first Trans Tasman but unfortunately I didn’t place in any event so one of my goals was to place in the events so coming home with two medals was even more special.”
Jarosz said she could see the improvement from his first Trans Tasman event to this one which was exciting.
“It feels incredible getting opportunities to represent Australia in my sport because some athletes don’t get a shot at representing their country so when I do it’s a massive achievement.”
Jarosz is set to move up the under-21 division for her next challenge.
“While practicing 70 metres, I would also be focusing on scores for Youth Worlds as it’s my next goal to make the team.”
It’s been a big few months for Werribee archers with Sophie Helleren competing at the World Youth Championships in August.
She also broke two Victorian records.
