Capturing the moment: Five striking shots from Winnipeg 2025

The World Archery Youth Championships in Winnipeg last week offered no shortage of drama – on and off the shooting line.

Athletes faced the elements, from blazing sunshine to sudden downpours, and overcame travel disruptions caused by airline strikes just to make it to the field.

What followed was a week of grit, joy and unforgettable moments.

World Archery photographer Emily Armstrong has picked her five favourite photos from the competition week.

5. The world in focus

The championships began with the smallest of details: the crisp view of target bales locked in the scope of an archer’s sight. For every athlete, this was the world they narrowed in on – nothing but red, blue and gold rings.

I loved capturing this moment of absolute focus; it felt like a quiet prelude to the drama that would unfold over the week.

4. Celebration in motion

If archery is quiet concentration, its release is pure emotion. No team showed that more vividly than India, exploding in celebration after a hard-fought win.

I managed to freeze that jubilation mid-air – fists clenched, mouths wide open in a perfectly united roar – capturing the energy that erupts once the arrows land.

It’s moments like this that make shooting a story more than just aiming and scoring.

3. Sky meets water

Few venues can rival Winnipeg’s striking backdrop. With the Canadian Museum for Human Rights towering above the field and its reflection mirrored in the rain-soaked ground, the medal ceremonies became moments suspended between sky and water.

Podium shots can sometimes feel monotonous from a photographic standpoint, but here, the architecture and reflections gave them a striking sense of place and atmosphere.

2. Strength in silhouette

Greatness doesn’t always need a face to be recognised. In the mixed team eliminations, British archer Penny Healey stood in perfect silhouette against the midday sun, arrow in flight.

It was a timeless portrait of the sport: strength, balance and determination, frozen against the bright prairie sky.

1. Triumph unfiltered

Team USA’s breakthrough moment wasn’t quiet. With medals freshly hung around their necks, the under-21 recurve men leaned into the lens with wide grins and triumphant shouts.

I captured that pure elation, a reminder that the youth championships are as much about joy and team spirit as precision and skill.