A schoolboy who dreamed of being Robin Hood has smashed a world long distance record in Flight Archery after firing an arrow the length of five football pitches.
Zak Crawford, who is just 14, shot an arrow nearly 500 metres - an incredible 150 metres further than the previous record.
The teenager was competing in the senior under-35lb class using a recurve bow at the Northern Counties Flight Championships.
He also broke world records in the junior recurve and junior compound categories at the competition at RAF Church Fenton in Yorkshire.
Zak, who started the sport when he was just six, said he was 'over the moon' at winning the hat trick of world records.
'I have been practising really hard but I certainly didn't expect to come away from the competition with three world records, I'm over the moon,' he said.
'I managed to get the technique right on the day and I couldn't believe it when the arrows went so far.'
Zak, who enjoyed watching Robin Hood films as a child, took up archery at the age of six after trying it at a fair.
He became the youngest member of his local club and got into the county team at the age of seven and the East Midlands team two years later when he was just nine.
He initially started with target shooting but was later introduced to Flight Archery, which is based on the distance an arrow travels.
'When I first began I was the youngest in my club and I found it very difficult as I was quite small and the bow was heavy,' said Zak, from Corby, Northants.
'But I really enjoyed archery and began training a lot so I soon got used to it.' Zak now trains at Welland Valley Archery Club every night for three hours, firing 1,000 arrows each session.
'One of my Grandad's friends does Flight Archery and he took me to a competition. I tried it and quite liked it,' he added.
'It involves a lot of hand and eye co-ordination and you need strength to draw the bow back.
source
Zak Crawford, who is just 14, shot an arrow nearly 500 metres - an incredible 150 metres further than the previous record.
The teenager was competing in the senior under-35lb class using a recurve bow at the Northern Counties Flight Championships.
He also broke world records in the junior recurve and junior compound categories at the competition at RAF Church Fenton in Yorkshire.
Zak, who started the sport when he was just six, said he was 'over the moon' at winning the hat trick of world records.
'I have been practising really hard but I certainly didn't expect to come away from the competition with three world records, I'm over the moon,' he said.
'I managed to get the technique right on the day and I couldn't believe it when the arrows went so far.'
Zak, who enjoyed watching Robin Hood films as a child, took up archery at the age of six after trying it at a fair.
He became the youngest member of his local club and got into the county team at the age of seven and the East Midlands team two years later when he was just nine.
He initially started with target shooting but was later introduced to Flight Archery, which is based on the distance an arrow travels.
'When I first began I was the youngest in my club and I found it very difficult as I was quite small and the bow was heavy,' said Zak, from Corby, Northants.
'But I really enjoyed archery and began training a lot so I soon got used to it.' Zak now trains at Welland Valley Archery Club every night for three hours, firing 1,000 arrows each session.
'One of my Grandad's friends does Flight Archery and he took me to a competition. I tried it and quite liked it,' he added.
'It involves a lot of hand and eye co-ordination and you need strength to draw the bow back.
