The triple setback leaves the Italian delegation with a single medal from the discipline—secured by Francesco Gregori in the individual bracket earlier in the tournament.
Morning Session Struggles in Crispiano
The final blocks of team matches took place at the newly constructed athletic facility in Crispiano, where the Italian squads faced fierce competition from neighboring Mediterranean nations. According to OA Sport, the morning opened with heartbreak for the women’s trio of Tatiana Andreoli, Roberta Di Francesco, and Chiara Rebagliati. After narrowly missing out on the gold-medal match via a shoot-off against Turkey, the Italian women dropped the bronze-medal playoff to Spain by a 5-1 scoreline, registering set scores of 55-53, 55-52, and 55-55.
Turkish and Spanish Opposition Prevails
The men’s formation comprising Matteo Borsani, Massimiliano Mandia, and Francesco Gregori encountered an even steeper challenge against a Turkish side spearheaded by Olympic champion Mete Gazoz. OA Sport reported that the Turkish squad secured a decisive 6-0 victory to claim the bronze medal, leaving the Italian men off the podium.
Meanwhile, the mixed team pairing of Borsani and Di Francesco delivered a much tighter contest against Spain’s Elia Canales and Andrés Temiño Mediel. Both duos maintained an elite standard of accuracy—averaging 9.56 points per arrow—before the Spanish pair edged out a narrow 5-3 win to secure the final podium spot, as detailed by OA Sport.
Medal Tally and Individual Prospects
With the team events concluded, Italy’s overall archery campaign at the 2026 Mediterranean Games rests primarily on the performance of Francesco Gregori, whose individual medal remains the highlight of the discipline for the Azzurri. While the team finals yielded three fourth-place finishes, attention quickly shifted to the afternoon sessions, where the remaining individual bracket matches would decide the final individual medal distributions in Taranto.
