Casey Kaufhold on her pre-match ritual and the Archery Premier League

Casey Kaufhold, the 22-year-old American archer, spoke to The Hindu on the sidelines of the recently concluded Archery Premier League (APL) in an interview timestamped 2026-11-02T18:23:06.0000000Z. Her comments covered her match routine, adaptation to the APL format and advice for younger teammates.

Before major events Kaufhold plays a specific song as part of her preparation; her go-to is “Don’t stop me now” by Queen, a three-minute declaration of unstoppable joy. She uses the track as a warm-up ritual ahead of big competitions.

Kaufhold has approached the sport with pace since her teenage years, described in the interview as running at the sport’s speed and shooting quickly and without fear. That rapid style is a recurrent theme in how she frames her competitive mindset.

When the Archery Premier League introduced a 15-second shot clock and a team environment that brought recurve and compound archers together, Kaufhold embraced the format. The interview notes that she responded by increasing her intensity and, in her words, turning the volume up.

On the sidelines of the APL she discussed practical topics including warming up to the league and offering guidance to developing archers; she specifically mentioned giving advice to budding archers like her Chero Archers teammate Kumkum Mohod. Kaufhold also reflected on her long involvement in the sport, saying she has been evolving with archery since the age of three.

The Hindu published excerpts of the conversation on November 03, 2026 07:51 am IST, presenting Kaufhold’s remarks about the APL, her preparation routine and her message to younger teammates.