Brady Ellison
American recurve archer with the longest world number one streak.
Brady Ellison (born October 27, 1988) is an American recurve archer. He held the world number-one ranking in men's recurve for the longest unbroken stretch, from August 2011 to April 2013. He picked up the nickname "The Prospector" at the 2015 world championships because of his knack for winning gold.
Ellison grew up in Arizona and began archery as a child, initially shooting a compound bow and representing the United States internationally as a youth archer in that style. On the advice of coaches at the national training center in Chula Vista, California, he switched to recurve. He now lives in Billings, Montana.
As a child, Ellison had Legg–Calvé–Perthes disease and wore leg braces. Later, he dealt with knee problems, especially before and during the 2016 Rio Olympics, as well as issues with the fingers on his drawing hand. In April 2016, he married Slovenian archer Toja Černe (now Toja Ellison). He says his wife introduced him to alternative medicine, which helped cure the pain in his fingers in late 2018. Their first child was born in November 2020.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Ellison scored 664 points in the ranking round, earning the 15th seed. He beat John Burnes 111–89 in the first round, then lost to Canada’s Jay Lyon 113–107 in the second. In the team event, he, Butch Johnson, and Vic Wunderle placed 10th after the ranking round and lost to Chinese Taipei 222–218 in the first round.
Ellison qualified for the 2012 Olympics at the U.S. trials in Colorado Springs. Sponsored by Solve Media, Hoyt Archery, Easton Arrows, and Axcel Sight and Scopes, he won a team silver medal with Jake Kaminski and Jacob Wukie.
At the 2016 Rio Games, he earned an individual bronze medal and a team silver medal with Jake Kaminski and Zach Garrett.
At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Ellison lost in the quarterfinals of the men’s individual event to eventual gold medalist Mete Gazoz of Türkiye.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Ellison and Casey Kaufhold won the bronze medal in the mixed team event, beating India’s Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat 6–2. In the individual event, he took the silver medal, losing 5–6 on a tiebreaker to five-time Olympic champion Kim Woo-jin of South Korea after his perfect 10 landed a couple of millimeters farther from the center.
Ellison has won medals at multiple World Archery Championships.
Quick Facts
- Full Name
- Brady Lee Ellison
- Birth Date
- 1988-10-27
- Birth Place
- Glendale, Arizona, U.S.
- Height
- 6 ft 0 in
- Weight
- 190 lbs
- Header Color
- lightsteelblue
- Show Medals
- no
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Ellison began archery as a child in Arizona, initially shooting with a compound bow and representing the United States internationally as a youth archer with that bowstyle. He switched to recurve on the recommendation of coaches at the national training center in Chula Vista, California, where he has spent much of his time. As a child, he suffered from Legg–Calvé–Perthes disease and wore leg braces; later health issues affected his knees, particularly before and during the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and the fingers of his drawing hand.
He married Slovenian archer Toja Černe in April 2016, and credits her with introducing him to alternative medicine, which was used to cure pain in his fingers in late 2018. The couple had their first child in November 2020. Ellison resides in Billings, Montana.
In popular culture, Ellison appeared in Episode 152 of the American TV show MythBusters, where he helped test the myth of the Ancient Greek 'arrow machine gun'; with his help, the myth was deemed plausible.
Reader's Guide
Brady Ellison's career spans multiple Olympic Games, beginning with the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where he finished 15th in the ranking round and advanced to the second round before losing. At the 2012 Olympics, he secured his spot via the USA Archery's Olympic Trials and won a silver team medal with Jake Kaminski and Jacob Wukie. At the 2016 Rio Games, he earned an individual bronze medal and a team silver medal with Jake Kaminski and Zach Garrett. Representing the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, he lost to eventual gold medalist Mete Gazoz in the quarterfinals of the men's individual event. At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, he and Casey Kaufhold won bronze in the mixed team event, defeating Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat of India 6–2; Ellison then earned silver in the individual event, losing 5–6 on a tiebreaker to five-time Olympic champion Kim Woo-jin of South Korea.
At the World Archery Championships, he won medals at several editions, including silver in the men's team event and bronze in the men's individual event at the 2021 World Archery Championships in Yankton, United States. At three editions of The World Games (2013, 2017, and 2022), he won silver in the individual field recurve competition. In 2022, he won the men's recurve event at the Vegas Shoot in Las Vegas.
Did You Know?
- Ellison holds the record for the longest continuous period as world number-one-ranked men's recurve archer, from August 2011 to April 2013.
- He earned the nickname 'The Prospector' during the 2015 world championships for his proclivity for finding gold.
- He suffered from Legg–Calvé–Perthes disease as a child and wore leg braces.
- He appeared on MythBusters Episode 152 to test the Ancient Greek 'arrow machine gun' myth, which was deemed plausible.
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