Addiewell’s Nathan Macqueen is targeting further success after winning gold at European Para-Archery Championships.
The two-time Paralympics star teamed up with Jess Stretton to take gold in the mixed team compound in Rome.
He bagged a second medal as he won bronze in the men’s compound doubles event with Jamie Harris.
It was a wonderful end to a highly frustrating time that saw him produce a disappointing performance at the Paralympics in Tokyo before missing out on the World Championships after testing positive for covid just before the start of the competition.
Speaking to the Courier, he admitted it was a relief to know he could still mix it with the best on the international stage and is hopeful he can take his recent form into 2023.
He said: “It’s been a really tough season for me so it was good to finish it on a real positive experience.
“I got covid the day before the World Championships and it took me a while to recover mentally and physically from that. It took a while to properly regroup.
“My last competitive shoot was the Paralympics in Tokyo so there was definitely more nerves than usual just because it had been so long.
“I had talked myself into thinking I was just going there for the experience and to have fun and enjoy shooting at an international competition again to try and take some pressure off and downplay it but it didn’t really work.
“As soon as you get into that environment and you’re in a competition, that desire and will just takes over and you want to do your best and get a medal.
“I did know what I was capable of doing because I’d felt really good in practice and in the lead up to the Championships.”
He added: “It’s a different kind of pressure when you’re in a team but I had complete faith in Jess and it was really great to be back shooting with her.
“The last time we did that was Tokyo when we were both pretty disappointed with our results so to team up and get a gold medal was a really special experience.”
While that’s it for 2022, Macqueen is determined to ride the momentum of hi victory when competitions are underway again next year.
He commented: “It’s a fair few months until the next event, which is a bit frustrating because when you’re doing well you just want to keep that up. The aim is to keep that high level and take that into next season.
“This is a bit of a turning point after a really difficult few months.
“I’m trying to almost view it as having been next season’s competition and run off that high and momentum when I get going again. Hopefully there’s a lot more to come next year and beyond.”
Don't miss the latest news from the West Lothian Courier. Sign up to our free newsletter here
