Nel defends title at AFRO Pumps shoot

Louw Nel defended his title in the compound men’s category at last weekend’s AFRO Pumps Archery Shoot. The event at the SKW sports grounds in Olympia marked the official beginning of the 2015 season. A total of 26 archers from all over the country participated in 10 different categories. As usual, the participants had to shoot a 720 round during qualification to determine how they would be ranked for the elimination round that followed shortly after. It was in the qualification round that Nel really made his presence felt, scoring an exceptional 680 points. Rikus Grobler was the second best shooter during qualification, accumulating 625 points. Both Nel and Grobler cruised through their elimination rounds to square off against each other in what promised to be a riveting final. Both rivals put up a good display but there was no stopping Nel who used his momentum to eventually beat Grobler with a score of 142 points to 125 points. During qualification in the women’s compound division, Ilana Malan was the stand-out archer, scoring an impressive 676 points. Connie Smit underlined her title ambitions as she scored 634 points, the second best score in this division. The pair then continued their run of form throughout the elimination round to meet in the final once again. As with Nel, Malan was in a class of her own. Smit showed great ability, but it wasn’t enough to fend off Malan who took top honours with 138 points to Smit’s 129 points. The compound cadet men’s category was won by Warren Smit as he edged out Jackson Engel in the final with scores of 128 to 122 respectively. Anton Zietsman won the compound master men’s division, beating Moritz Hoff in their final with scores of 133 to 119. Hoff finished in second place, followed by Harvey Park who came in third on Saturday. Other winners: Compound beginner: Taro Samuelson Recurve Men: Paul Grobler Recurve Cadet Men: Adriaan Grobler Compound Junior Women: Jolien Els Compound Cup Boys U15: Gideon Brink Compound Boys U13: Dirk de Bod Recurve Cub Boys U15: Morné Meyer WINDHOEK-SPORT REPORTER