Archery Canada appoints Shawn Riggs as recurve head coach

Archery Canada has named Shawn Riggs its new full-time national recurve programme head coach ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Riggs acted as Canada’s head coach for the Pan Am Games and World Archery Championships in 2015, and multiple Hyundai Archery World Cup stages.

He has stepped into the role immediately, starting at the World Archery Youth Championships in Argentina.

“Shawn is the perfect choice. We have the right leader stepping in, early in the quadrennial, to lead our programming and athletes,” said Archery Canada High Performance Advisor Alan Brahmst.

“He has demonstrated all of the attributes that make today’s top national coaches successful, and he is committed to continuous learning to ensure our athletes receive the best technical coaching and leverage the newest concepts from the sport science domain.”

Former national and six-time Olympic coach Joan McDonald was subsequently appointed system pathway coach.

Archery Canada’s next generation strategy recently received significant funding from Sport Canada, Own the Podium and the Canadian Olympic Committee, and McDonald will focus on developing younger Canadian archers for international success.

“With her vast experience and proven success in technical coaching, I am very happy Joan has agreed to take on this important role,” said Riggs.

“These are exciting times for recurve archery in Canada and our focus on winning at the international level has never had so much support. We are in a unique position where we can build off strong experience, new talent and good performances… to develop for the future.”