Archery complex earns Olympic honor

NEWBERRY – Newberry joined a list of proud cities Friday. That list boasts the likes of New York, Chicago, Atlanta and San Antonio. They did so with the Easton Newberry Sports Complex receiving a Community Olympic Development Program (CODP) status for archery Friday, Aug. 30. The city is one of only 10 in the nation to receive such a designation and only the second of its kind to showcase archery.

“The city earned this designation after almost two years of working towards it and getting a USA Archery endorsement,” said Bobbi Ullman, a United States Olympic Committee representative.

The ceremony took place Friday morning at the Easton Newberry Sports Complex, located at 24880 NW 16^th Ave. in Newberry. The junior archers kicked things off with an open shooting session that started at 10:30 a.m.

Around noon, the athletes, their families and some Newberry residents made their way into the gymnasium-turned-ballroom for a luncheon and the CODP presentation.

In attendance at the ceremony were Bobbi Ullman, London Olympic men’s team archery silver medalist Jake Kaminski, Easton Sports Development Foundation vice president, Don Rabska, and Easton Sports Development Foundation president, Greg Easton.

Everyone near the event seemed to be brimming with excitement, but it would be hard to match the enthusiasm that belonged to Robert Turner, head archery coach at the complex.

“To try to explain what this means for our kids is incredibly difficult,” Turner said when asked how this could improve the facility. “This will give every athlete the opportunity to try archery in a professional setting, with top notch coaching, equipment and facilities.”

Turner began his archery career at the age of 15, ending up with five national championships in his native Australia. He worked with the Australian National Team before coming to the Easton Foundation three years ago. He has also been involved with the United States National Team, a relationship that helped to put the small-town complex on the map.

When the luncheon was coming to a close, the attendees were moved back into the room where the first shooting session took place so the wall displaying the CODP logo could be unveiled. The junior archers gathered along the wall with Greg Easton and together pulled the covering off. The consensus among the event-goers seemed to be that it was a rewarding moment for those who worked so hard.

“While this is about establishing an Olympic pipeline, it’s also more than that,” Rabska said. “It brings me joy to see a community come together and earn something like this.”

The excitement of the event was also multiplied with the attendance of Jake Kaminski, a silver medalist at the London Olympics. Kaminski has been a professional for seven years and said he wished he could have had the support from a great facility when he was first beginning in archery.

“For these kids to get proper coaching and get started on the right foot is so invaluable,” Kaminski said.

The Easton Newberry Sports Complex is home for upwards of 200 archers for classes each week said Turner. The students range in experience from first-time shooters to having two or three years already under their belt. On top of being honored with the CODP status, the complex will also play host to the Florida Archery Association Federation of International Target Archery State Championship Sunday, Sept. 8.

The motivation behind the United States Olympic Committee creating the CODP designation is not just to expand the Olympic pipeline but also to provide youths with an opportunity to participate in Olympic sports. Now with even greater support, the community of Newberry will be able to continue to offer a high level of instruction to these athletes, Ullman said.

“Going to London and being with track stars and athletes of all sports, and being able to feel the same, was a dream come true,” Kaminski said. “If this kind of program can help someone make the change to being a professional easier, it will be incredible.”

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