Waldron and Gomes cop gold at Archery’s National Indoor Championships

Trevaughn Waldron and Eslyne Gomes claimed the marquee titles as Archery Guyana’s 2026 National Indoor Championships concluded following two days of high-stakes precision at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

The event, which saw 56 archers register, making it the largest indoor tournament in the federation’s history, showcased the rapid expansion of the sport across the country, driven by a significant influx of youth talent.

In the heavily contested Recurve Men’s division, Waldron produced a composed performance under pressure to capture gold, outlasting Mehandra Chatargum and Purshotam Sharma, who secured silver and bronze, respectively.

The Recurve Women’s title went to Gomes, who topped the podium ahead of silver medallist Karin Onica Toppin and bronze winner Roshini Boodhoo .

In the high-powered Compound division, Gerard Mekdeci demonstrated exceptional technical consistency to walk away with the senior men’s national crown, fending off strong challenges from Anand Mangra and Errol Toppin.

The Barebow disciplines proved equally competitive, with Nolan Gray securing the senior men’s title and Shianne Affonso-Simon prevailing in a tightly fought women’s division.

Speaking at the closing ceremony, Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) President Godfrey Munroe lauded the federation’s structural progress.

“Archery Guyana must be commended for its organisation, discipline, and unwavering commitment to athlete development,” Munroe said, addressing the packed arena.

The tournament also highlighted the sport’s burgeoning youth base. In the Under-18 divisions, Saifullah Gani and Samiyyah La Cruez dominated the Recurve categories . Gani took gold ahead of Keziah Archer, while La Cruez led a competitive field to win the women’s junior title over Fatima Gani.

The junior Compound category was an outright sweep for the Pro Archers club, spearheaded by a gold-medal performance from Ravish Singh, followed by brothers Nicholas and Timothy Sukhu.

The federation took substantial steps to modernise its local operations for this year’s championship. In a bid to prepare local archers for international pressure, officials introduced a newly acquired, World Archery Americas-approved TS digital timer and electronic signalling system .

Scoring was managed via the globally recognised IANSEO software, providing real-time live updates to spectators throughout the weekend .

Archery Guyana President Vidushi Persaud-McKinnon praised the tournament’s execution and hinted at broader sports science frameworks on the horizon.

“We are incredibly grateful to our competition committees and volunteers who made this historic turnout a reality,” Persaud-McKinnon stated, before announcing upcoming plans to launch mandatory vision screening and bloodwork monitoring initiatives aimed at optimising high-performance development for national athletes.

National Judge and Director of Shooting Ryan McKinnon, alongside judges Robert Singh and Afzal Karim, oversaw the event to ensure strict adherence to World Archery standards.