NÎMES ARCHERY TOURNAMENT 2025 – Victoria Sebastian and Thomas Chirault Secure Bronze Medals in Recurve archery on home Soil
The Nîmes Archery Tournament, the fourth leg of the Indoor World Series, marked one of the first major archery events of 2025. Held in front of a passionate French audience, the national team aimed for podium finishes. While expectations were high, the French archers managed to clinch two bronze medals in the recurve category, showcasing their resilience and skill.
Chirault’s Consistency and Sebastian’s Home Triumph
In the men’s competition, Thomas Chirault delivered a stellar performance, securing a spot on the podium. His journey included a notable victory over fellow Frenchman Evann Collaud in the quarterfinals. Collaud had previously stunned the crowd by eliminating spanish contender Pablo Acha. However, Chirault’s path to the final was halted by the formidable Brady Ellison in the semifinals. Undeterred, chirault bounced back in the bronze medal match, defeating matteo Borsoni in a thrilling contest.
Bronze for Thomas! 🥉
A nail-biting finish at home, decided in the very last arrow.#IndoorWorldSeries #archery pic.twitter.com/1lWpsNlOvg— World Archery (@worldarchery) January 19, 2025
The women’s event saw heightened anticipation as France’s top archers, except for Caroline Lopez, took to the stage. Amélie Cordeau, who had impressed at the Kings of Archery in November, secured second place in the qualifiers but was eliminated early by Italy’s Tatiana Andreolli. Simultaneously occurring, Lisa Barbelin and victoria Sebastian advanced to the quarterfinals. In a surprising turn, Sebastian outperformed Barbelin to reach the semifinals.Although she narrowly lost to eventual champion Penny healey of Great Britain, sebastian triumphed in the bronze medal match against Reena Parnat. Representing the local Arc Club Nîmois, her victory held special meaning for the home crowd.
Victoria Sebastian shines at home! 🥉🏹
A bronze medal in Nîmes to celebrate in front of her crowd.#IndoorWorldSeries #archery pic.twitter.com/b9sTNEoWvC— World Archery (@worldarchery) January 19, 2025
While no French archers competed in the compound category, the younger generation made their mark. In the U18 recurve event,Lucie Filhastre claimed silver,and Romane Sablin mirrored this achievement in the U21 compound category,signaling a bright future for french archery.
