Short turnaround from indoors as Puebla kicks off World Cup circuit

Last year it was Central Florida; this year, stage one is Puebla.

The 20th edition of the Hyundai Archery World Cup begins in a matter of days, with the Mexican city – known for its rich architectural heritage and designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site – the only new host on the 2026 circuit. Shanghai, Antalya and Madrid remain on the calendar.

Over 200 archers from around the world will compete at archery’s premier international circuit opener at Jardín del Arte Puebla. One of the key storylines heading into stage one is the quick turnaround from indoor to outdoor competition.

In 2025, there was a month between the Vegas Shoot and the opening World Cup stage in Florida. In previous years, Vegas was held in early February, giving athletes ample time to transition outdoors.

This year, however, there is just over a week between the end of the indoor season and Puebla. Many archers have had to balance indoor and outdoor preparation simultaneously – but who has managed that transition best?

It is also worth noting that Brady Ellison and Emircan Haney are among the reigning Hyundai Archery World Cup Champions competing next week.

Event schedule

• Tuesday 7 April: Compound qualifying
• Wednesday 8 April: Recurve qualifying
• Thursday 9 April: Compound eliminations
• Friday 10 April: Recurve eliminations
• Saturday 11 April: Compound finals*
• Sunday 12 April: Recurve finals*

*Teams in the morning, individual final fours in the afternoon.

How to watch

Coverage of the first stage of the 2026 Hyundai Archery World Cup will be broadcast worldwide by World Archery’s partners and stream live for archery+ subscribers.

Check local listings on BeIN (MENA), CCTV (China), Claro Sports (Latin America), Eleven (Chinese Taipei), Fox (Australia), SpoTV (Korea and Southeast Asia), SETIndia (Indian subcontinent), Rai (Italy) and TRT (Türkiye).

Live scores will be available on the World Archery website, with updates and highlights across World Archery’s digital platforms throughout the competition.

Indoor World Series winners arrive in form

There has been little time for Indoor World Series Champions to celebrate.

Brady Ellison, Mike Schloesser and Ella Gibson all secured titles in their respective divisions by winning the Vegas Shoot and are all set to compete in Puebla, looking to carry that momentum into the outdoor season.

Ellison claimed his fifth Vegas Shoot title in six years and begins the season as defending recurve men’s Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion. Schloesser secured his fourth title in seven years.

For Gibson, long one of the leading names in compound women’s archery – including a run of over 1000 days as world number one before Andrea Becerra took the top spot – Vegas gold had previously proved elusive.

Now that has changed. The Madrid 2025 stage winner will be aiming to translate that success outdoors and improve on her World Cup record, having reached four Finals without taking the overall title.

A strong start in Puebla could cap an impressive few weeks for the 25-year-old.

Lopez back for good?

It was unusual not to see Sara Lopez atop the compound women’s podium in Nanjing last October.

The Colombian had won seven consecutive World Cup titles leading into 2025. Although she competed at the opening stage in Central Florida – where she exited in the first round – she did not appear in the remaining stages and therefore missed the Final.

Lopez returns to start the 2026 season and will be determined to show that last year was an anomaly.

With compound set to feature at LA28, the stakes are higher than ever. Lopez also faces strong internal competition for Colombia’s mixed team position, with Alejandra Usquiano impressing in 2025, including gold at the South American Open Championships and bronze in Gwangju.

Usquiano also enjoyed a strong indoor season, winning events in Rio and Nimes, making this a compelling rivalry to watch in Puebla and beyond.

Who’s competing?

Two of the 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Champions are set to compete in Mexico next week:

• Recurve men: Brady Ellison, USA
• Recurve women: An San, Korea (not competing)
• Compound men: Emircan Haney, Türkiye
• Compound women: Mariana Bernal, Mexico (not competing)

These are the top-ranked archers shooting in Puebla:

• Recurve men: Marcus D’Almeida, Brazil (world rank: 1)
• Recurve women: Casey Kaufhold, USA (world rank: 2)
• Compound men: Mike Schloesser, Netherlands (world rank: 1)
• Compound women: Andrea Becerra, Mexico (world rank: 1)

A total of 238 archers (69 recurve men, 57 recurve women, 58 compound men and 54 compound women) from the following 32 teams are registered for the tournament:

AIN, Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Denmark, El Salvador, Estonia, France, Germany, Great Britain, Guatemala, India, Israel, Mexico, Moldova, Netherlands, Poland, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Türkiye, USA.

Competition in Puebla begins with compound qualifying on Tuesday afternoon.