The Tuks archer, Danelle Wentzel, can justly claim to have been there done that and got the T-shirt to prove it. 

Over the last few years, she won gold and silver medals in the compound category during the World Cup Stage 1 and Stage 2 tournaments; bronze at the World Indoor Championships; gold at an outdoor World Cup; she also set a world record. 

The one thing missing from her impressive CV is a good showing at an Outdoor World Championships. It is something she hopes to rectify from next week when she will be competing at the World Archery Championships in Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. 

The Tuks archer admits having won a gold medal during the recent Hyundai Archery World Cup in Antalya has been a confidence booster however she is not going to take anything for granted. 

"Archery is a mind game. The one who can handle the pressure the best is the one who is going to win. What stood me to good stead during the World Cup in Antalya was that there was never a moment that I was thinking about the final outcome. 

"Before each shot, my whole focus was making sure that I get to execute 'the process' to perfection. That led to me winning. From next week the challenge again will be to go at it one arrow at a time."

Wentzel has undoubtedly been in good form since April. Two weeks before she competed at the World Cup she set South African records on two consecutive days shooting scores of 703 and 708 during a competition at Marks Park in Johannesburg. 

Unfortunately for Wentzel, her record stood for only a day. Jeanine van Kradenburg who will also compete at the World Championships shot a score of 709.

According to the Tuks archer, if she can come close to shooting a score of 700 and something points during the World Championships, she could be in contention to medal.

Wentzel ascribes her passion for archery to pure exhilaration; that is why she does not mind spending hours at the shooting range, trying to refine her skills with each arrow that leaves her bow day in and day out.

"During an international competition, when your opponent is standing next to you, it is a case of pure adrenalin rushing through your body every time you draw your arrow, aim and shoot.  The only thing I can compare it to is a Coke bottle that has been shaken. The pressure builds up until it is so intense and then suddenly the cap pops open, and the relief flows through your body."