Archery star Sarah Prieels is born with the sport in her genes: “My parents met through Archery, I am the fifth generation of archers on my dad side of the family with multiple Olympic medallists, while on my mum's side my granddad was a world medallist too.” Prieels herself is European Indoor and Outdoor champion – and this week is our athlete Building up to Birmingham!
“What I love about Archery is the peace and quiet; when I have a tough mental day I can pick up my bow and just forget about everything else,” Sarah Prieels says. “I started Archery when I was 8 years old. My dad got me my first bow which at the time was a HOYT Banshee. The cool thing about it was it could be a recurve bow or a compound bow. It was a recurve bow for a month or two, but after that I was getting a tendinitis so we switched to compound and I never looked back.”
Sarah Prieels competed at The World Games 2017 in Wroclaw, Poland, finishing 7th in Women’s Compound. “My expectations for The World Games 2022 are to do better than I did in Wrocław 5 years ago, which means being in the last 4 and hopefully coming back with a medal. The season is starting for me this weekend with some national competitions, and then I am off to Antalya for the first World Cup of the season. My preparation will be going around Europe, to compete and make sure my setup and technique are ready for The World Games.”
Prieels is a full-time archer at the moment: “I need to start my dissertation for my master in sport policy, management and international development, but that is a post- The World Games commitment. I train Archery 4 days a week, 2 sessions a day, and strength and conditioning with my PT @savagepersonnaltraining. I score arrows, I do drills, I test equipment, it varies a lot. At the moment with the cold and rainy weather in Scotland, I mainly shoot indoors at 30 m.” At The World Games, she would like to watch Sport Climbing and Sumo, if she finds the time.
Sarah Prieels also got questions through social media.
-What is the best cookie?
The new Nutella biscuits are amazing but I like to have Biscoff when I travel cuz I am Belgian
-What are you most looking forward to about the Games? :)
Being part of Team Belgium is always a great experience, and I love going to multisport events.
- Who is your idol in Archery?
My idols are Gladys Willems and Erica Jones.
-What has been the biggest challenge in your career?
Finding the right coach for me, the special person who can make you a better version of yourself and make you achieve your goals.
-Your goal for 2022?
Climbing on the podium at the European championships, The World Games and going to the World Cup final.
The World Games is a multi-sport event staged every four years by the International World Games Association, organised with the support of the International Olympic Committee. The 11th edition of The World Games will be held in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, 7-17 July 2022. 3,600 athletes from 34 sports and over 100 countries will take part in The World Games.