Belgium to shoot for first-ever mixed team medal

The afternoon started with the first two rounds of individual recurve eliminations, featuring everyone but the top 8 from qualifications, who had byes into the 1/16 round. The men’s 1/48 elimination round went without surprises, as the athletes ranked 9-17 from qualifications had a bye into the 1/24th. However, the second round produced upsets; Malaysia’s Haziq KAMARUDDIN (No 26) defeated European champion Rick VAN DER VEN (NED) 6-4. No 17 seed Thomas FAUCHERON (FRA) led Tarundeep RAI (IND) 3-1, but the archer from India came back to win the match 6-4. RAI’s teammate Jayanta TALUKDAR was stopped by Brazil’s Marcos BORTOLOTO (No 43). 
On the women’s side, the two most surprising defeats occurred in the 1/24 round: 2007 World Cup Final winner Dola BANERJEE (IND) lost to No 33 Marina CANETTA GOBBI (BRA), and Mayra MENDEZ (VEN), No 44, defeated No 21 Céline SCHOBINGER (SUI) 6-4.
The individual recurve rounds were followed by the mixed team eliminations from the 1/8 round to the semi-finals. Mixed teams are made up of the top male and female athlete per country from qualifications. Matches consist of four ends of four arrows, two by each athlete, with cumulative scores out of a possible 160.
In the recurve division, the American pair of Khatuna LORIG and Brady ELLISON (photo), the winning mixed team in Shanghai, was seeded No 1. They easily qualified over Guatemala in the 1/8 elimination round; in quarter-finals, they defeated Venezuela, who had upset Colombia in a shoot-off. In their semi-final against India, the United States made the difference on the first end (39-34). Seeded No 4, Deepika KUMARI and Atanu DAS couldn’t overcome the deficit. Olympic medallists LORIG and ELLISON won the match 150-146. 
Meanwhile, the third-ranked Mexican team of Aida ROMAN and Juan René SERRANO, bronze medallists in Antalya, barely defeated Chile in their first match with a comeback on the last four arrows to advance to the quarter-finals. After an easy victory over France, they faced China, seeded No 2, in the semis. Following a tied first end, Mexico suffered from several 8s, allowing XU Jing and DAI Xiaoping to take a five-point lead. China never looked back, winning the contest 151-144, and will face the United States in the gold medal match. India and Mexico will meet for the bronze.
In the compound division, Denmark, seeded No 1, was expected to qualify for the gold medal match, and they did not disappoint. Camilla SOEMOD and Martin DAMSBO were the strongest pair in the first two rounds with scores of 155 and 157. In the semi-finals, their opponent was Mexico, who qualified over Colombia in a close shoot-off (20-19). Denmark opened the semi-final with 40 points, building a comfortable lead. Linda OCHOA and Julio Ricardo FIERRO attempted a comeback in the second half, but came up short by just one point: Denmark won 154-153.
Belgium produced a major upset on the other side of the bracket. After a victory over India in the 1/8 round, Sarah PRIEELS and Michael CAUWE (main photo), seeded No 7, faced Shanghai winners Erika JONES and Braden GELLENTHIEN (No 2) in the quarter-finals. Belgium started with a perfect 40, and went on to win the match 155-154. In semi-finals, Belgium met Italy, who had qualified over third-ranked France. Marcella TONIOLI and Sergio PAGNI led from the start, but Belgium came back on the last four arrows. Nevertheless Italy won the shoot-off and will face Denmark in the final. The bronze medal match will be between Belgium and Mexico. “Our quarter final victory against the United States gives us confidence for the bronze medal match”, concluded Sarah PRIEELS and Michael CAUWE.
World Archery Communication