Actualités

Lopez and Fullerton get compound top seeds after just 36 arrows due to thunderstorms at Madrid 2026

07 juillet 2026

Madrid, Spain

Vrai nom:

Mathias Fullerton pulling out arrows from the 10-ring at Madrid 2026.

Every Hyundai World Cup usually conjures up its own drama, but on Tuesday few would have expected Madrid 2026 - stage four of the 2026 season – to start off in such unusual circumstances.

As Europe endures a heatwave, temperatures are expected to soar into the high 30s degrees celsius this week in Spain, and expectations were fully met during official practice at Vallehermoso Stadium as the sun beamed down.

In fact, it was so hot that a couple of recurve archers suffered broken limbs as they began to melt, causing all recurvers to rush their bows under the shade.

Compound qualification duly followed from 16:00hrs local time and, after 36 arrows, the usual halfway break occurred.

However, as dark clouds began to crowd the sun, action was initially delayed by 10 minutes due to a warning of thunderstorms.

As the heavens opened, though, it became apparent it would last a bit longer than 10 minutes.

It seemed to come out of nowhere, with the Spanish sun shining just moments earlier, but strong winds and extreme rain followed, as did thunder and lightning strikes.

All compound archers were encouraged to rush up into the stands and take their equipment with them as the wind and rain picked up, leaving all archers, coaches, volunteers and everyone else in Madrid completely stunned.

With the conditions failing to let up after an incredible hour, it was decided the final compound qualification results would be based on the 36 arrows initially shot, for the first time in World Cup history.

It leaves Mathias Fullerton's 358 at the top of the 83-strong compound men's field, and he will go into Friday's individual eliminations as the number one seed.

Sara Lopez crossing her arms smiling as she poled early at Madrid 2026.

It is the world number one's first pole position at a World Cup this year and his second at 50 metres internationally in 2026 - the 2026 European Outdoor Championships being the other.

“Never, ever,” said the 2023 World Cup Final champion as he and the rest of the athletes trudged back to the buses. “I even asked Martin Damsbo, my teammate, because he's shot at all the World Cups, and he said it's never, ever happened, so I guess it's a first.”

“I laughed and said it might be the lowest winning qualification score ever. It's kind of funny. I felt like I shot really well in the first 36 arrows, so that was nice.”

“It was a little bit tricky with the wind and, of course, the extreme heat. I managed it pretty well, and so did Damsbo, my teammate. I think we handled it pretty well, and Tanja [Gellenthien] did too, so that was awesome to see.”

“It was the right decision. There was lightning, so we wanted to stay safe, of course. Safety first.”

Colombia's Sara Lopez - who is bidding for World Cup Final gold number 10 in Saltillo this September - is the top seed in the compound women's competition, just over a week after winning silver at the Tlaxcala 2026 Pan American Championships.

“This is the first time in my whole life that this has happened,” said the great Lopez, whose pole today (353) was her first at an international competition since the Iguazu 2024 World Ranking Event. “But I don't want to be like, ‘Oh, it doesn't count.’ No... it counts.”

“I was so ready to continue the competition. It was really weird because we were just scoring and then we heard this weird noise, almost like a truck coming, and it was shocking because I was here for a week and we had the most perfect days the whole week, and then rain.”

As action in Madrid ended early, it means the 1/48 elimination rounds have been pushed back to tomorrow morning before the compound team eliminations and recurve qualifications in the evening.