|
 Also on display will be two of the gold medals he has garnered at
world events: the 2007 Indoor World Championship and 2009 World
Games.
Wunderle, 40, has competed since before he could read, and has
numerous national and world titles. He represented the U.S. A. on
the Olympic teams competing at Sydney, Athens and Beijing. He won an
individual silver and team bronze at the 2000 Sydney Games, not to
mention 44 national and several world titles.
“So many people in the community were so supportive of me during my
training,” Wunderle said. “I wanted to give them an opportunity to
view the success they helped me achieve.”
Vic’s dad, Terry Wunderle, is considered one of the top archery
coaches in the world, and the elder’s book, “Archery: Think and
Shoot Like a Champion,” is popular among serious archers. Vic has
left a few autographed copies of the shooting guide at the Arlee for
purchase.
 On July 14, the World Archery Federation based in Switzerland listed
Vic Wunderle among the world’s best ever Olympic archers, placing
him second in honorable mention following their top 15. (See
sidebar) When this list was published, Wunderle was still in
contention for yet another berth on an Olympic team. When the dust
settled, he narrowly missed a position, placing ninth.
He did, however win a spot on the U.S. Field Archery Team, and will
complete for the U.S.A. at the World Championships in Ireland Sept.
25 – Oct. 3.
Best Olympic Archers of All-Time: Round-up and Honourable
Mentions
Excerpt Reprinted from World Archery, July 14, 2016:
(PRINTED WITH PERMISSION)
Although he never took a gold medal,
Victor Steven "Vic" Wunderle had an Olympic career remarkable for
its consistency.
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He took individual silver at his first Olympics in 2000, beaten by
home champion Simon Fairweather. That year, he also took a bronze
medal with the USA team, by beating Russia in a shootoff.
In 2004, he won three matches in a row before
being stopped by eventual champion Marco Galiazzo in the quarterfinals. He also
helped the men’s team to a fourth place finish.
In 2008, he dispatched then World Archery Champion Im Dong Hyun in the third
round in the biggest upset of the tournament, but was again stopped in the
quarterfinals, this time by Juan Rene Serrano.
In his career, he took a host of Pan-American Games medals, and a team bronze at
the World Championships in 1999 – and at the age of 40, Wunderle is still trying
for the US Olympic team, over 20 years after he became junior World Archery
Champion in 1994.
Has any other archer managed three consecutive individual top eight finishes at
Olympic Games? We don’t think so.
© 2014-2016 World Archery Federation, Maison du
Sport International, Avenue de Rhodanie 54, 1007 Lausanne, Switzerland
[Gaye Maxson, Arlee Theater]
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