12 September 2006 - Interview with Van Natta (USA) "I love match play"

“I love match play” Lausanne – 12 September 2006  Some call her the ever smiling Jamie, but behind the angel face hides a fierce competitor. We met with new World Record holder Jamie Van Natta (USA) at the Field World Championships in Göteborg. There, she added a bronze to a growing history of medals. She wants to become a fully professional archer soon.   Jamie Van Natta (USA), aged 28 years :   Extract of her best results:

2006 Field World Championships Göteborg, Sweden Bronze Medal Individual 2006 World Cup Stage 3 San Salvador, El Salvador Silver Medal Individual Bronze Medal Team 2006 World Cup Stage 1 Porec, Croatia Silver Medal Individual Silver Medal Team 2005 World Games Duisburg, Germany Silver Medal Individual 2005 Outdoor World Championships Madrid, Spain 9th place Individual Silver Medal Team 2005 Indoor World Championships Aalborg, Denmark Bronze Medal Individual Gold Medal Team 2004 Field World Championships Plitvice Lakes, Croatia 5th place Individual 6th place Team 2001 University World Championships Madrid, Spain Gold Medal Individual Gold Medal Team 1997 Outdoor World Championships Victoria, Canada Bronze Medal Individual Silver Medal Team 1997 Indoor World Championship Istanbul, Turkey 4th place Individual Gold Medal Team 1996 Junior World Championships San Diego, USA Silver Medal Individual Gold Medal Team

Photo © Dean Alberga  Jamie, 2006 seems to be a breakthrough year for you with some really good results. What is the difference from the previous years ? Yes, you could say I am on the top of my game this year. I have been focusing even more on archery than before and I would like to become a full professional in the future. Now I go out to practice every day and I take part in many more competitions. At the top level, competing is actually the best thing an archer can do to improve. You get used to the pressure of an event and the pressure of getting a 10 when it really counts.   You were a talented kid in archery earning a bronze medal at the World Target Champs in 1997. What happened between 1997 until you returned to the top ? I knew what I was capable of doing in archery at a young age, but then I also had to settle in my working life. I went to university and earned my degree in Science Engineering. Now I work as a computer analyst at the University of Toledo (Ohio, USA). Thanks to the management, this job allows me to train more and to travel more than ever. When I ranked 9th at the Outdoor World Championships last year, I knew I could come back to the top.   Where do you train now, and where do you compete ? I train at a club named Adams Conservation Club in Holland (Ohio). There are only a few archers in this club but we have a big field so it is good for training. This year I am competing about two thirds of the time in the USA and one third internationally, taking part for instance in the new Archery World Cup. In the US alone there are about 20-30 elite compound women archers. They give me plenty of challenges and I am now more consistent.   You have been terrific, setting two World Records : 701 pts for the 70m round, and for the FITA Round you broke the magic 1400 pts barrier. You set up the World Record at 1402 pts (out of 1440 pts). Take us through this amazing performance? It was at the US Nationals. I wasn’t feeling particularly special at the beginning, because the US Nationals is a long competition. I was just feeling like I was shooting in practice, I was very relaxed. However, the longer it went, the more I realized I could break the World Record. Midway at 30m (the last distance), I started to feel really nervous and my last three arrows were quite difficult.   How does it feel now ? Great !… I had shot more than 1400 in practice as I am sure other archers do. However, to have done it in a competition, in front of the fans and without perfect weather, is a big triumph for me!   We see you are good at the long rounds. Do you also like match plays with 12 arrows ? I love match plays ! It is almost a different sport but it pushes me to shoot better. It puts more pressure on me but the goal is to make a 10 when it matters most. A match with 12 arrows is long enough!   The compound archers are achieving some really high scores this year. What do you think of this evolution ? I think the level has been steadily rising in both the talent of archers and the quality of equipment. For instance, I shoot with a Hoyt bow and I am really happy with the recent progress made with the limbs and the shock absorption. I also think the archers are now getting the best out of their equipment. My knowledge on how to handle my material and tune my bow has improved since last year.   OK… Your need for competition even brought you to the Field World Championships in Göteborg. Do you like this discipline ? Yes! The atmosphere is a bit different. It is about the terrain, about making difficult shots. Here I got a lot of experience in judging target distances and calculating the angles. However, I must say I do it largely by instinct. By comparison Outdoor Target Archery is more demanding on execution and precision.   How do you like the contact with other archers ? Since we walk the course in groups of four, this is an occasion to talk to archers I usually don’t meet. It is quite nice. I think the overall ambiance is very similar to Outdoor Target, and I also meet a lot of familiar faces.   Is the Field discipline popular in the USA ? Actually not very much… People are more into 3D archery. However, 2 years ago the US Field Nationals were held just a couple of hours away from my home. I decided to go and qualified for the World Championships in Plitvice Lakes (CRO), where I was 5th. I thought I would try again this year. To get some more experience, I went to a few competitions in Canada and, for some weeks, I have been moving around the targets a lot at my practice range. I needed to improve my accuracy in evaluating the distance.   Your bronze medal at these World Championships proved that Field is not a hobby for you. Do you actually have some hobbies ? Not any more… I used to do ballroom dancing, horseback riding and even drawing. Archery has become an ever increasing part of my life but it has given me so much in return. It has given me the chance to travel more than I had ever imagined and meet more people than I had ever thought possible. I would like to thank the organizers here for being so welcoming.   What is your goal for the future ? I would like to be a professional archer, maybe the first woman ever to do so. It is very difficult to actually make a living out of archery. I would like to thank our governing body and all the people and companies which have supported me so far. I hope I can get even more support from my sponsors and maybe attract some from outside the archery world. I just hope I can make archery even a bigger part of my life in the future.   Thank you Jamie and the best of luck !   Didier Miéville FITA Communication Photo © Dean Alberga