Isaac Bedford has been awarded gold standing for his shooting at the World Archery Youth Championships by Archery Canada in August of 2021.
This is one of the two World Archery Target Awards the national organization gave Bedford. The second was a purple for his shooting in Mission in September of 2021.
These are the two highest levels an archer can achieve from the national organization.
But Bedford has his sights set much higher.
Bedford finished 17th overall in the cadet men’s category in Wrocław, Poland, which he said was “nowhere near where I wanted to be.”
It was his first outdoor competition, which not only includes the added challenge of wind and weather, but also an increase in distance from 18 m to 50 m.
As well, his bow had been delayed when his luggage was lost in transit and he had to use someone else’s bow for the first day of shooting.
Bedford compared a competitor’s bow to being nearly as individual as eyeglasses, and said the adjustment to someone else’s was tough. Going back to his own when it arrived, four days after he had landed, was hard again.
But his own frustration at his results were not shared by past coach Al Campsall, who was there when the young archer got his start at the Williams Lake Sportsman’s Association.
“The kid is just lighting them up,” said Campsall, who helped Bedford get his start in the Junior Olympian Program (JOP) at the local sportsman’s association. “He’s by far the top archer I’ve ever coached.”
“To watch him blow by me and be a significantly better archer than I am, and he’s only 17 years old, it’s humbling, but it’s a good humbling,” added Campsall.
Read more: Campsall adds title of world champion to already extensive archery resume
Campsall does not take credit for Bedford’s high level of achievement.
While Campsall coached some of the higher-achieving archers in the JOP program for some of the young athletes performing above normal.
Since then Bedford has won at the BC Winter Games, led the Canadian mixed team to a top-10 finish with a near-perfect round and now is shooting at international levels.
“I’m pretty excited for him and proud of him,” said Campsall, acknowledging the hard work Bedford has put in to get where he is.
For his part, Bedford said he practices four to five hours most days and the work has meant a “lot of missed family time.”
Bedford says this practice is critical to maintaining the level of shooting he has achieved since he took up archery at 12 years old, something he did in order to be able to hunt alone, which minors are not able to do with a firearm.
During the pandemic, Campsall has stepped back from coaching, and Bedford has since stepped up to coach the newer archers.
Bedford himself says the coaching has taught him as much as just practicing has.
“If you really want to understand something, learn it well enough to teach it,” advises Bedford.
During the pandemic, group shooting was suspended and the JOP program at the Williams Lake Sportsman’s Association has gone from having 40 to 50 young archers coming out to now only having about 10 at their group night.
But the group is hoping to build those numbers up again for the Thursday night shoots for archers between the ages of eight and 21 years old.
The program is indoors and out of the weather and the Williams Lake Sportsman’s Association can supply all the required equipment for new archers to get their start.
For himself, Bedford is now hoping to go to some competitions in the United States in order to win some of the bigger prize money available south of the border, which would go a long way to funding his ambitions.
The next tournament shoot Bedford will be heading to is the Canadian regionals in Quesnel, and the next World Archery Youth Championships will take place in Limerick, Ireland in the summer of 2023.
Read more: OUR HOMETOWN: Bedford set for debut at Youth World Archery Championships
ruth.lloyd@wltribune.com
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