Open Hand Autumn 2016

Member Spotlight
39
Johnboy’s Hitting the
Target for Tokyo 2020
DBUK member, John
(Johnboy), is a successful
archer from Northern Ireland.
He recently came second in
the B1 Class (for archers with
no sight) of the British Visually
Impaired Archery
Championships at Lilleshall;
the home of Archery Great
Britain. Johnboy was the only
deafblind archer who
competed in the
championship; the other
competitors all had varying
degrees of sight loss, making
his success all the more
impressive.
This result will put Johnboy
into a good position to be
picked up by Archery Great
Britain (GB) as an elite athlete.
If he is picked, this would
attract GB sponsorship and
bring him into the national
coaching scene. In turn it
would be much more likely
that Johnboy would be
considered for selection to be
part of the GB and NI team for
the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
Although, visually impaired
archery is not yet a sport
covered by the Paralympic
games it is in contention
following high demand for the
sport.
Chris Macfadyen, John’s coach
commented: “John’s passion
for the sport was apparent
from the start. He soon
discovered that he was able to
compete alongside his ‘ablebodied’
counterparts, with the
help of tactile sight, a piece of
equipment which helps his
alignment to the target.
“John inspires everyone who
works with him and is a
fantastic ambassador for the
club and for deafblind
awareness.”
We're sure you will join us in
congratulating Johnboy on this
fantastic achievement and
wish him all the best for future
challenges!