Brady Ellison Video Interview, U.S. Olympic Archer

Despite failing to bring home the gold this summer, U.S. archer Brady Ellison left London with his head held up, as he helped the U.S. team win the silver medal in archery. Ellison, 24, along with teammates Jake Kaminski and Jacob Wuki, defeated Japan and upset the defending gold medalists, South Korea, before losing to Italy in the final match. While coming up short may have been a disappointment, there is much to look forward to in the future of this top-ranked archer.

Born in Glendale, Ariz., Ellison has always had a competitive streak. In 2005, while attending camp, Ellison’s archery equipment malfunctioned when it suffered a snapped string. Waiting for his parents to send him a backup bow, Ellison’s friend lent him his replacement bow to use. Fortunately, once Ellison started to use his friend’s bow, he was able to showcase his talent.

Ellison competed in the 2007 World Archery Championship. Along with teammates Butch Johnson and Vic Wunderie, Ellison was able to clinch an individual quota and a team quota as they helped the U.S. earn a victory over Japan with a score of 218-213. This same team would end up traveling to Beijing the following year for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Ellison made his Olympic debut in the summer of 2008. During his time there, Ellison ended up with a total of 664 points, earning him the 15^th seed for the competition bracket. He went on to face and, eventually beat, Canada’s John Burnes in the first round with a score of 111-89. Ellison was then eliminated by Canadian Jay Lyon by a score of 113- 107. In the team event the trio of Ellison, Johnson and Wunderie were eliminated in the first round as they lost 228-218 to the Chinese Taipei.

Since qualifying for the Olympics back in 2008, Ellison has never been afraid to wear his Olympic pride on his sleeve – literally. “For me, it symbolizes the commitment and the permanency of being an Olympic athlete,” Ellison told Uinterview in an exclusive interview, referring to his colorful Olympic tattoo. “We train four years for this one opportunity to compete at this world stage.”

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