Kathy Egan
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Warren Barker, 15-year-old son of Kenny and Joanne Barker of Monticello, helped the U16 Team USA paintball competitors become the 2025 world champions. On Aug. 27-28, top paintballers from all over the world gathered in Dreux, France, to out-maneuver one another in hopes of gaining world champ status. The United Paintball Federation hosted 21 nations who competed in various categories, including veterans, men's, women's, U19, and U16.
Barker has been playing paintball since he was 10 years old. It began as a fun way to spend an afternoon with his dad and brother and evolved into a passion and desire to play competitively. As such, he has been working hard to develop, practice and improve his skills, which resulted in his being invited to join Team USA.
The U16 Team USA players competed against, and were victorious against, the best of the best from Poland, Finland, Belgium, Switzerland and Norway. The final win was Team USA over Norway for the gold. On the United Paintball Federation's website, they had this to say about the younger players, “The future of the sport shined bright. USA youth programs delivered once again, capturing both golds with wins over Poland (U19) and Norway (U16).”
It only took a few days and a little patience for Barker to overcome the fatigue of competing in a time zone wherein his body was craving sleep, but the clocks were already chiming the lunch hour. As he recalls, “It was a bit of an adjustment; I was tired at the start, but as time went by, my body got used to it.”
The Barker parents traveled to Europe with a competitor and they flew home with a world champ! The family is reveling in this win, but it is not time for Barker to rest on his laurels. Barker and his dad are off to another, albeit not worldwide, competition in Garland, Texas, in just a few days.
Congratulations to Barker, his family and Team USA!