A girl from the Keeseekoose First Nation (FN) has been recognized by the FN for having won the Grand Prix 3-D shoot in Prince Albert recently.
Lilyanna Quewezance, age 14, has been participating in archery with her home club, the River Valley Archery Club (RVAC) of Kamsack, for around nine months, and on August 2 to 4, she, along with her coach, Scott Green, president of RVAC, travelled to Prince Albert to participate in a 3-D archery competition hosted by the Timberland Bowbenders Archery Club.
Over 220 archers from across Canada descended upon Prince Albert to compete in the 2019 Outdoor 3-D Archery Canadian Championships. Over three days the archers competed in four rounds of 3-D competition, although the event continued until August 11.
In the compound unlimited-cadet women division, Quewezance finished third, earning a bronze medal and a chance to shoot in the Grand Prix event.
Facing competitors with much more experience, and much more expensive equipment, Quewezance remained cool under pressure to take the top spot, for which she received a plaque to commemorate her win.
Having participated in the RVAC annual 3-D shoot north of Veregin the weekend before, in which she had shot well, both she and her coach, Green, were very pleased with the win.
“The final eliminations were very intense,” he said. “With each competitor that Lilyanna eliminated, it kept getting more exciting. She hasn’t been shooting in competitions like the others she was up against who were more experienced and had far superior and expensive equipment. We are very excited and proud of her performance at the competition. You don’t need to spend a lot of money on equipment to win. This sport is all about the shooter.”
Lilyanna said she was surprised and ecstatic about her win in Prince Albert. “Archery is a sport where the “sky is the limit,’” she said.
“I hope her performance will inspire more area youth to join this awesome sport of archery,” said Green. “It’s a very friendly sport where one can make lifetime friends. It’s a really close-knit sporting community,” he said.
Lenora and Alvin Quewezance of Keeseekoose FN are Lilyanna’s parents and they were with her for her big win in Prince Albert. “We are so very proud of our girl and her accomplishment at the archery championships,” Lenora said. “We were in tears.”
While at the shoot, Green and Lilyanna accepted a donation cheque for $5,000 from the Saskatchewan River Chapter Saskatchewan Club International on behalf of RVAC.
“This donation will help with spray foaming insulation in the Veregin Rink, which has become a base for the club,” Green said. “To get the insulation done would allow our members to shoot all year round in the rink.”
“Archery Canada supports the achievement of high performance excellence in archery in all categories and the development of a national archery infrastructure to promote archery participation across Canada in co-operation with our partners, the Provincial Archery Associations,” says information on their website.
The Timberland Bowbenders are committed to the development and pursuit of target archery, 3D archery, and bowhunting, says information on the Internet. “We have a strong commitment to youth and the Junior Olympic Program (JOP).
“Our goal is to promote the sport of archery for all ages, a sport that is growing for family and individual fun,” it says.
Green acknowledged Lilyanna’s parents “for taking the reigns to make this awesome moment happen. We hope more parents will step up like they did and bring their youth out so we can send more youth to these shoots.”
