Mike Schloesser, Ella Gibson prevail in dramatic Vegas shootdowns on new shootoff target

Mike Schloesser and Ella Gibson won the Vegas Shoot on Sunday, prevailing after hours of relentless pressure in the compound men’s and women’s shootdowns on the new shootoff target in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

It marked a third Vegas title for Schloesser, while Gibson secured her first victory at the most prestigious event on the Indoor Archery World Series circuit, held at the 4500-capacity Planet Hollywood Theatre.

It was an emotional win for Schloesser, with his wife Gaby and their 10-month-old daughter Luna watching from the stands.

“It makes me very emotional; this year has been tough coming to terms with dad life,” said world number two Schloesser, who first won the Vegas title in 2014. “I feel the season wasn’t like I wanted it to be – it was tougher than I expected. But in the end, I closed it out very strong with a win here. I’m super proud of that.”

The shootdown opened with a clean first end across the field, with only Jacob Weber eliminated.

As the competition progressed to the inner 10 scoring zone, where only arrows touching the X-ring counted, the field quickly narrowed. The second end saw 12 archers eliminated – including Abhishek Verma, Braden Gellenthien and Robin Jaatma – leaving 19 to advance.

By the fifth end, several top names – including Ajay Scott, Stephan Hansen and Nicolas Girard – had exited.

Two-time champion Kyle Douglas, who had led throughout qualification, was the next to fall, just missing out on the podium, while Bodie Turner exited in the seventh end with a 29, falling short of a third title.

The contest came down to Matthew Burns and Schloesser in the eighth and final end, where Schloesser shot 30 to Burns’ 29 to secure victory.

In the women’s competition, Gibson maintained her precision from qualification, where she had recorded 78 10X.

The world number three from Great Britain defeated USA’s Alexis Ruiz after five ends, scoring 30 to 29 in the deciding end.

After a tied opening end, the second round saw USA’s 17-year-old Taylor Miller eliminated with a 28, leaving Gibson and Ruiz as the only athletes to shoot 30.

“It feels amazing – nerve-wracking and really cool,” said Gibson, who won bronze at the Vegas Shoot last year. “The aim was to make the smaller targets.”

“Truthfully, I didn’t feel I was as prepared coming into Vegas as I normally am, so I was trying not to be too hard on myself if I didn’t get the result I wanted. But I’m so glad that it all came together – and that’s probably not just from a couple of weeks of practice but from a lifetime of practice.”

Tanja Gellenthien and Morgan Rives, both scoring 29, contested the bronze medal match, with Rives taking third place.

An unprecedented five women shot 900 in qualification to reach the championship shootdown for the first time in event history. Gibson praised the depth of the field and highlighted the continued growth of the compound women’s division.

“It’s really amazing that we got there,” she said. “All the women have been working so hard. Our division has been growing so much over the years – not just in standard but in entries as well. I really hope we continue to see that happening.”

A total of 3183 archers registered for the 59th Vegas Shoot, and the competition will return in March 2027 for its 60th anniversary. 

Winners: 2026 Vegas Shoot

Categories eligible for the Indoor Archery World Series are listed only. Full results for the championship and amateur categories are available via the Vegas Shoot website.

• Compound men: Mike Schloesser, Netherlands
• Compound women: Ella Gibson, Great Britain
• Recurve men: Brady Ellison, USA 
• Recurve women: Casey Kaufhold, USA