Ballyvally get ready to host two championship events next season

Ballyvally Archery Club have a lot to look forward to in 2016 with two major championships to organise.
Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.
Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.

The first will be the Northern Ireland Junior Indoor Target Championships, to be held in the Banbridge Leisure centre on Sunday 24th January but the big one will be the British Open in field archery.

Preparations are already well advanced for the latter which will be held in the beautiful grounds of Greenmount College near Antrim on 11th / 12th June.

The two courses have already been mapped out and trial events held in October and November.

Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.
Local archers enjoying Ballyvally AC's trials at the Greenmount College course for the 2016 field archery British Open.

Next year’s Championships will mark the fifth time that the local club has been awarded this prestigious event by the British Archery Society within the last 12 years.

Ballyvally have already organised accommodation at Greenmount for the archers who will be expected from England, Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.

And to add to all the excitement, this year for the first time in almost 15 years, juniors will be able to compete in their own classes.

CLUB PREPARATIONS begin for the new season

Ballyvally Archery Club will reopen for the new year on Wednesday 6th and Thursday 7th January with the usual eight practice sessions in Banbridge Leisure Centre.

Beginners are very welcome to come and try a new, but ancient and challenging sport, which appeals very much to families since it is open to all from the age of four years upwards.

For more information on the club, contact club coach Frank Mulligan on 028 406 23748.

If you would like to walk / work off the Christmas pudding etc, club members are invited out to Castlewellan Forest Park on Monday 28th December at 10am to start setting up the course for the Open shoots that will take place there.

This will be good preparation for the big tournaments in 2016, for the club’s visit to shoot in Kendal in April and also for those archers who qualify for The Worlds in September 2016.

The World Championships will be shot in the Wicklow Mountains next year so the locals involved won’t have too far to travel.

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