ARCHERY: Even though the venue was nowhere near full, Australian archer Taylor Worth knows its going to be pretty special when competition kicks off there at next year’s Rio Olympics.

Worth, who recorded he’s third consecutive ninth placing at the Rio test event last week, said he tried not to be too distracted by the hype and the possibility, but he was impressed by what he saw.

“The venue itself was very different to anything I’ve ever shot in before,” he said.

“But it was exciting to see how many spectators they could fit in the area and how close they would be to the field.

“I think the venue will have an amazing presence next year, when all of the decorations and advertising is finished to promote the Games.”

Worth was one of four Australians to get a sneak preview of next year’s Olympic venue.

Joining him were the two archers who helped him qualify the Australian team for next year’s Games, Ryan Tyack and Alec Potts, and leading Australian female archer, Semra Lingard.

Of course all places in the Australian team are still up for grabs, and there are plenty of archers who are spending countless hours training and honing their skills in the hope they will win the crucial selection trials.

Worth, who was Australia’s sole male representative at the London Olympics, has enjoyed a stellar 2015, even though he felt he was slow to get going in Rio.

“My performance in the ranking round at the start of the week wasn't great, but I think I expected too much of myself after my performance in Colombia,” he said.

“But I fixed a few mistakes I was making and was able to fight back in the match play and finish with my third ninth place finish in a row at the end of the season.

“Being the test event my emotions weren't too high, I was mainly focussed on observing the venue’s behaviour with the elements like the lighting and wind.”

Because he is no guarantee of returning to Rio next year, Worth was able to keep his emotions under control last week.

He knows he has a lot of work in front of him, and if it does happen, he wants to arrive at next year’s Olympics in the best form of his life.

“My nerves during the competition were only of the task at hand,” Worth said.

“The Olympics are next year so there is no point worrying about that now. I just have to focus on shooting each arrow now to make them as best as possible for next year.”

ROSS SOLLY FOR ARCHERY AUSTRALIA