Mexico claimed a pair of medals in the compound division at the Hyundai Archery World Cup Final, as Dafne Quintero secured silver and Rodrigo González earned bronze in Saltillo, Coahuila, according to tournament reports. The opening day of competition at the historic Plaza de Armas drew capacity crowds, though the event also brought early exits for top-seeded competitors.
Dafne Quintero Fights Through Pain for Compound Silver
Dafne Quintero captured the silver medal in the women’s compound bracket after a demanding path through the tournament brackets. The Coahuila-born archer opened her afternoon session against Turkey’s Hazal Burun, surviving a tightly contested match where both competitors shot a clean opening round before Quintero edged out a 144-143 victory, according to Vanguardia.
Quintero and Gibson fought to a 146-146 draw, forcing a golden arrow tiebreak that the Mexican athlete won to advance to the gold-medal match.
In the final, Quintero fell 145-144 to United States representative Alexis Ruiz, settling for the silver medal. Speaking after the podium ceremony, Quintero revealed the physical toll she carried into her home-state tournament.
“I don’t know how many people know this, but I had a car accident a month ago, so I’m not completely healed,” Quintero said, as reported by La Crónica. “So I knew I had that challenge to arrive and then all the mental mess I had to go through. I think I’ve discovered a new capacity of who I am and what I can handle.”
The result marks Quintero’s third career medal at the World Cup Final level, following bronze finishes in 2023 and 2024.
Rodrigo González Battles to Bronze in Men’s Compound
In the men’s compound competition, Rodrigo González de Alba secured the bronze medal following a series of high-pressure matches on the Saltillo stage. González opened the quarterfinals against Dutch archer Mike Schloesser, finishing regulation deadlocked at 146-146 before claiming the sudden-death golden arrow win, Vanguardia reported.
González advanced to face Denmark’s Mathias Fullerton in the semifinals, where Fullerton earned the spot in the gold-medal match with a 149-145 victory. Relegated to the bronze-medal playoff, González met Colombia’s Pablo Gómez Zuluaga—who had eliminated fellow Mexican competitor Sebastián García 149-148 in the quarterfinals. González put together a composed performance to defeat Gómez 149-147, according to La Crónica.
Austria’s Nico Wiener ultimately claimed the men’s compound gold medal after defeating Fullerton.
Local Atmosphere and Weekend Outlook
Competitions at the Plaza de Armas drew enthusiastic crowds throughout the opening sessions in Saltillo’s historic center. Sebastián García, competing in front of local fans from Monclova, acknowledged the emotional weight of the home-state environment after his quarterfinal loss to Gómez Zuluaga, noting that the crowd’s cheers nearly brought him to tears.
The World Archery World Cup Final concludes on Sunday with the recurve divisions, featuring Olympic competitors Matías Grande in the men’s bracket alongside Ana Paula Vázquez and Alejandra Valencia in the women’s tournament.
Worth a look
