LAC LA BICHE - See the world without leaving the region while you enjoy a world-class sporting event in Lac La Biche County... and have a beer too.
From Sept 16 to 22, the 2024 World Field Archery Championships – and 325 of the world’s best target shooters – will be in Lac La Biche County. The week is filled with sports and community activity, starting with the opening ceremonies and athletes’ parade on Monday and wrapping up with the championship medal matches that will take over the Lac La Biche Golf Club on Saturday and Sunday. In between, says Rene Schaub, the president of the host club Lakeland Archers, there will be opportunities for front row seats to qualifying competitions, a community rodeo, farmers’ market, displays from the Alberta Trappers’ Association, cultural demonstrations ... and a beer tent.
Schaub says a main focus in planning for the world-class event been to welcome the community as much as the community is welcoming the world.
“We have all these athletes and coaches and families coming from 29 countries, and we want to show them how we can put on an event,” said Schaub.
And while the world-class athletes have been training all year to make the trip to Lac La Biche, the community has also had practice at hosting world archery events as well. In 2019, the Lakeland Archers and the Lac La Biche community hosted the World Archery 3D Championships. The archery club has also hosted national and provincial championships in recent decades.
It’s a pretty big thing to welcome back the world, says Schaub, who is also a Team Canada archery coach and a world-certified archery tournament judge.
World events like this one, he explained, rarely come to small communities, mainly because most lack the needed infrastructure or support levels. Over the past decade, the World Field Archery Championships, which are held every two years, have taken place in metropolitan cities like Croatia’s capital city of Zagreb, Southern Ireland’s capital city Dublin, Cortina, Italy, and most recently, Yankton, South Dakota, in 2022.
Having it in Lac La Biche is pretty special, said Schaub.
“They need huge cities with big infrastructure…lots of money, and you know, support…so to have that happen to a small community like Lac La Biche... two times now ... it’s amazing…it’s out of this world,” he said.
Many folks, he stated, can’t believe that the local archery club has not only hosted a major international competition once, but is doing it again.
“That’s quite an accomplishment for our community,” he stated. “That’s why we have so much support.”
From the earliest stages of planning, Schaub said help has come not only from the World Archery organization, but from the local archery club members and a core of community supporters, including local groups and organizations. Members of groups like the Junior Forest Rangers, Lakeland Scouts and Girl Guides, for example, will be leading the athletes during the opening ceremony parade, to kick off the championship week on Monday, Sept. 16 at McArthur Place from 4:30-5:30 p.m.
Lots to do
From the opening ceremony, each day of the event will offer something for all visitors. Schaub says the schedule is packed with activities and opportunities for residents to see the athletes, watch them compete and enjoy the festivities. Archery events will feature team and individual competitions, starting with elimination rounds that will take place at the Lakeland Archery grounds on the Mission Road about five kilometres from downtown Lac La Biche. From the first arrow shot to the final one that will crown the gold-winning athletes, it’s a great opportunity to see a world-class sport on home soil.
“It’s a world event… where else are you going to see some of the top archers in the world shoot unless you get to Lac La Biche?” he told Lakeland This Week.
Where to see the events
A full listing of the week’s events are in the Sept. 10 edition of the Lakeland This Week newspaper available across the region. Information can also be found at www.lakelandtoday.ca and on the LakelandToday social media pages. Information about the championships is also posted to the Lakeland Archers social media pages.
