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Chirault double powers France to golden treble at Taranto 2026

28 août 2026

Taranto (Italy)

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Paris 2024 Olympic medallist Thomas Chirault claimed the recurve men’s individual and mixed team titles as France collected three gold medals from the archery competition at the Taranto 2026 Mediterranean Games on Friday.

Chirault, who had upset top seed and reigning World Archery Champion Andres Temiño Mediel in the semifinals, continued his impressive run with a commanding 7-1 victory over Italy’s world number 71 Francesco Gregori in the individual final.

Leading 3-1 after two sets, the world number nine produced a perfect 30, including two Xs – the X-ring being the central zone within the 10-ring used to break ties in qualification – to extend his advantage before closing out the match with a 28 to Gregori’s 24.

Chirault had earlier partnered with Caroline Lopez to win the recurve mixed team title, with the French pair sweeping Türkiye’s Mete Gazoz and Dunya Yenihayat 6-0 in the gold medal match.

The Frenchman narrowly missed out on a third title, settling for silver in the men’s team event after France lost in straight sets to a Spanish side led by Temiño Mediel.

“This day is a little marathon for me, divided into three finals,” said Chirault. “But this is the best part of the iceberg, because it means that everything went well during the week.”

“The gold medal with Caroline in the mixed race is very significant, but above all, it allows France to move up the medal table and also gives us a lot of experience ahead of the upcoming competitions.”

Chirault’s compatriot Lisa Barbelin completed France’s three-gold haul by claiming her first individual title of the season, much like him.

The Paris 2024 individual bronze medallist defeated 2023 European Games silver medallist Elia Canales 7-3 in the recurve women’s final, adding gold to the bronze medal she won indoors at the Nimes Archery Tournament earlier this season.

In the bronze medal match, Spain’s 19-year-old Paula Álvarez González came out on top in a battle of teenagers, defeating Türkiye’s Elif Gokkir 6-2.

Gokkir had earlier combined with Gizem Ozkan and Yenihayat to claim the recurve women’s team title, overcoming the French trio of Barbelin, Lopez and 18-year-old Laï-Tsan Randriantsara 5-3 in the gold medal match.

“This medal means a lot because it’s an almost completely new team,” said Barbelin. “There were ups and downs, but we managed to stay focused until the end. It’s a medal ahead of next year’s European Games, which serve as a qualifying round for the Los Angeles Olympics, so it’s really important.”

Randriantsara added: “It’s my first step into the senior category and I hope it bodes well for my future.”

Quotes and images courtesy of Taranto 2026 and World Archery Europe.