Archer Semra Ferguson’s Rio dream snatched away in heartbreaking circumstances

HOW would you feel if you won a spot for your country in Rio then had to watch someone else fill it? This is predicament confronting archer Semra Ferguson.

Semra Ferguson has had her Olympic dream snatched away in heartbreaking circumstances. Picture: Liam Kidston

HOW would you feel if you won a spot for your country at the Rio Olympics then had to watch someone else fill it?

This is crushing predicament confronting Sunshine Coast archer Semra Ferguson in the wake of Australia’s selection of West Australian Alice Ingley as the sole female archer for Rio.

Ferguson has appealed the decision.

Semra Ferguson has had her Olympic dream snatched away in heartbreaking circumstances. Picture: Liam Kidston

Ingley surged late in the selection process after deciding to leave her home state of Western Australia and train in Queensland this year.

Ferguson earned Australia a quota spot in the women’s archery competition at the Games when she won this year’s Oceania qualifiers in April in Tonga in windy conditions that she ranked the toughest she had experienced.

But despite nailing the Olympics berth for Australia Ferguson was not guaranteed to fill it and her form wavered just enough in the final trials to enable Ingley to sneak past her in the view of the selectors.

Ferguson, 26, who won last year’s Australian Open, had been the hot favourite to go to Rio.

Australia will take three male archers to Rio with Alex Potts, Ryan Tyack and Taylor Worth edging out triple Olympian Matt Gray.

Australia were only millimetres away from securing a medal in the teams event at the 2015 World Championships and believe they have podium potential in Rio.

Alice Ingley has replaced Ferguson on the Rio team. Picture: Liam Kidston

Sunshine Coast based Tyack, who narrowly missed selection in the last two Olympics, has been rewarded for the perseverance of himself and his mother Lynnette who coached him after studying the sport via the only archery book in her local library.

Worth went to London and is pleased to be part of an inform team as opposed to flying solo.

“Rio will be a completely different Olympic experience for me,” Worth said.

“In London I was the sole male competitor. Now with a full team it will change the whole experience. We are all shooting really well. If we are all on song on the right day then we are capable of potentially finishing on the podium.

“For London I went in with all guns blazing without a real clue of what I was doing. But looking back some mistakes cost me very dearly and I know I have learnt a lot from that experience.”

Worth moved from Perth to Brisbane last year to train with the new national coach Ya Ping Shah and to live with and be challenged by close friend Tyack.

Originally published as Archer Semra Ferguson’s Rio dream snatched away in heartbreaking circumstances