VICKY JENKINS boosted her hopes of reaching the Paralympic Games in Rio after enjoying a successful European Para-Archery Championships.
The Malvern archer, who is a member of Bromyard Bowmen, flew out to Saint-Jean-de-Monts in France, with the rest of the Archery GB paralympic team and came away with a bronze medal in the W1 women’s category which comprises female archers who use a wheelchair because of an impairment to the legs.
Jenkins secured a third placed finish with a ten point lead over her Spanish opponent, Liliana Oliveros, and now has the chance to shoot for a GB Para-Archery place in June.
With two spots up for grabs in the W1 category selection shoot, 38-year-old Jenkins is one of three women aiming to book their place at the Paralympic Games which take place in five months’ time.
Talented Jenkins will aim to secure her place in the Paralympics when she takes part in a final selection shoot for athletes in early June. The selected athletes will subsequently be announced by the British Paralympic Association.
Michael Peart, paralympic coach at Archery GB, said: “We had high hopes for the team travelling to France and they certainly met expectations.
“There was a fantastic level of shooting overall at the tournament and it is testament to both the team and individual medallists that they saw off the competition and secured a great medal haul, especially in such challenging weather conditions.
“With less than six months until the Paralympic Games it is vital that our archers have the opportunity to practice competing in a high pressured environment and there was a great level of focus throughout the squad.
“We hope to build on everything that we’ve learned during the tournament and use this to hone the team’s skills in the build-up to Rio.”
A team of 18 GB archers competed at the tournament in France across four classes with the team bringing home six medals.
The GB team came second out of 31 countries in the overall medals standing, winning a total of three gold, one silver and two bronzes.