Round-up: New champions emerge, veterans triumph at 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final

Tears, drama, joy, disappointment – the Nanjing 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final delivered it all, in two days that perfectly captured the contrasts of the sport.

On Saturday, Mariana Bernall became the first compound woman other than Sara Lopez to win the World Cup Final since Odense 2016 – and celebrated her maiden circuit title.

Emircan Haney then followed with victory in the compound men’s event, another first-time champion who impressed by defeating past winners Mike Schloesser and Mathias Fullerton along the way.

Their consistency throughout the season meant both were always in contention – but neither arrived in China as the outright favourite. With their victories, a new generation of compound stars announced itself.

In recurve, however, it was the familiar faces who prevailed. Tokyo 2020 Olympic Champion An San – still only 24 but already a veteran at world level – redeemed her disappointment from the Gwangju 2025 Hyundai World Archery Championships to end her year on a high.

And American great Brady Ellison claimed a record sixth Archery World Cup Final Champion title, cementing his status as the most successful recurve man in the history of the circuit.

Key takeaways

There’s more to Mexico’s compound women than Andrea Becerra. Even in defeat, the world number one – who overtook Ella Gibson earlier this year – can reflect on an extraordinary season: golds in Central Florida and Antalya, plus titles at the Chengdu 2025 World Games and the world championships. But Bernal, her 22-year-old teammate, proved Mexico’s depth in talent. After defeating Türkiye’s Hazal Burun and India’s Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Becerra needed just one more win for a perfect outdoor season. Bernal had other plans. The younger Mexican forced a shoot-off at 147-147, with her 10 landing 13.9 millimetres closer to the spider. It was her second win over Becerra this year, following the Copa Merengue final, suggesting more all-Mexican podiums may be ahead in 2026.

Emircan Haney: the heir to Demir Elmaagacli? Before Saturday, the USA was the only country with more than one Archery World Cup Final Champion in compound men. Now Türkiye joins that list thanks to Haney. In 2015, Elmaagacli beat Reo Wilde on his way to the title. Ten years later, Haney followed a similar path, defeating another legend – Dutch star Mike Schloesser – before edging Mathias Fullerton 149-148. With a mixed team gold from Samsun 2018 already to his name, Elmaagacli remains Türkiye’s benchmark in compound men. But at just 24, Haney has time on his side to surpass even that legacy.

Brady Ellison overtakes Kim Woojin – for now. The magic of the recurve men’s gold medal match at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games – when Woojin beat Brady – still resonates across the sport. This time, it was the American’s turn to celebrate. Ellison’s sixth World Cup Final win takes him past the Korean’s five, making him the most successful recurve man in the competition’s history. At 36, the ’s-Hertogenbosch 2019 world champion shows no sign of slowing down – proof once again that form is temporary, but class is permanent.

Champions: 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final

• Recurve men: Brady Ellison, USA
• Recurve women: An San, Korea
• Compound men: Emircan Haney, Türkiye
• Compound women: Mariana Bernal, Mexico