Saskatoon archer Chris Kent-Rodgman eyes world championship gold

In just five years, Chris Kent-Rodgman has turned a hobby he picked up with his family into a path toward his first international gold medal.

“It’s certainly building, I guess, the hardware collection,” Kent-Rodgman said.

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For the third time in his career, the soon-to-be 42-year-old from Saskatoon is preparing to represent Canada on the international archery stage. He is one of six Saskatchewan athletes set to compete at the World Archery Field Championships starting Tuesday.

He said his previous experiences wearing the maple leaf at world championships and last year’s World Games in Chengdu, China, have informed his preparation for this year’s event in Yankton, South Dakota.

“The lessons I’ve learned in the past about getting too anxious about details that don’t matter as much are taken under advisement,” Kent-Rodgman said. “I’ve made some good changes, and I feel good about going into this one.”

The Kent-Rodgman family first picked up a bow during the COVID-19 pandemic, more specifically Chris’ two daughters in the spring of 2021.

After watching his kids take an interest in the sport, Chris, who grew up playing several sports including baseball, rugby, and hockey, decided to try archery himself a few months later.

“I decided if they’re going to be into it, I should volunteer, help coach, support the club,” Kent-Rodgman said.

“I thought I should probably understand what I’m talking about if I’m going to be doing that kind of thing. I kind of dove into it myself and found out pretty quickly that I loved it.”

What hooked the local engineering vice-president wasn’t the rush the sport gave him. Instead, it was how focusing on a distant target calmed his mind after each practice.

“I call it meditation basically,” Kent-Rodgman said. “To do it well, correctly and repeat that performance, you literally can not think about anything else. It’s very mind-cleansing, but it also is a mind-body connection.”

Kent-Rodgman joined the Saskatoon Straight Shooters Archery Club and entered his first competitions in 2022, beginning a path to his first podium at the Canadian Field Championships in 2023.

“The competition part bit me right away,” Kent-Rodgman said. “The improvements started to happen pretty quickly because I get a little obsessive with things, I guess you could say, especially if I show some aptitude for it.”

After making his international debut with Team Canada in 2024, Kent-Rodgman has won back-to-back national field championships, finished second at the 2025 Lancaster Archery Classic in Pennsylvania, and been one of 12 competitors at last year’s World Games.

Saskatoon archer Chris Kent-Rodgman is a two-time Canadian champion in barebow archery after first taking up the sport in 2021. (World Archery/Facebook)

“The kids were up watching at three in the morning watching me compete (in China) on a phone, laying in bed with mom,” Kent-Rodgman said. “That’s a pretty cool memory they talk about quite often.”

Named Saskatchewan Archery Male Athlete of the Year for the 2025-26 season, Kent-Rodgman has become one of Canada’s top threats to medal at the World Archery Field Championships after a dominant last two seasons at home.

“I don’t think I’ve lost a national competition for a couple of years now,” Kent-Rodgman said. “Those (top athletes) have to now try and catch me, which is fun. It’s all awesome, it doesn’t feel like a quick experience because of how much time you actually dedicate.”

Unlike Olympic athletes, Kent-Rodgman has specialized in the barebow discipline, which features no sights or stabilizers on the bow, forcing competitors to rely on instinct and familiarity with distance and speed.

According to Kent-Rodgman, the difference between a podium finish and early elimination comes down to his ability to handle stress.

“People say it’s 90 per cent mental and 10 per cent physical,” Kent-Rodgman said.

“I’d even go higher than 90 per cent. You can learn to shoot a bow pretty quickly, but everything that goes on up top is the most important part, especially at these really high-end competition levels.”

The one accolade missing from his trophy case is a world championship, something he’s thought about since picking up the sport five years ago.

According to Kent-Rodgman, it’s not about personal accomplishment. Instead, he sees a gold medal as something that would honour the sacrifices those in his life have made to allow him to pursue archery at its highest levels.

“When I think about what life would be like as a world champion, I think about the people that supported me to get there,” Kent-Rodgman said.

“The time that my wife and kids have allowed me to spend to do this, everyone that’s taught me something on the way.”

Kent-Rodgman will compete alongside fellow Saskatchewan archers Sarah St. Amant (women’s compound), Grace Trevena (women’s U21 compound), Sydni Keichinger (women’s U21 compound), Jovica Djukic (men’s barebow) and Ember Frigon (women’s U21 barebow) in South Dakota, with competition running through Sunday.