30 September 2006 - Shanghai is now over !

Shanghai is now over ! Shanghai, 30 September 2006   Recurve Men – Gold Medal Match – Park Kyung-Mo (KOR) vs. Jang Yong-Ho (KOR) Jang over Park in the second Korean match of the day The last match in Shanghai was another 100% Korean match between the two teammates Park and Jang. In a disputed shooting it is finally the second who proved the most consistent today. On the very last arrow, Park could have tied the match with a 10, but he hit the 9 ring to leave victory to Jang. At the end he wins over his friend 112-111. This defeat has no consequence for Park, though, who was already qualified for Mexico after a 1st place in the 2nd event of this year’s World Cup in June in Antalya.    Recurve Men – Bronze Medal Match – Di Buo Ilario (ITA) vs. Yong Fujun (CHN) Chinese fans cheer their archer up to bronze Yong Fujun knew he would have a hard time fighting for a World Cup medal to Italian Ilario Di Buo, the best ranked archer in this first Archery World Cup and winner of the last Series in San Salvador. Tied after the first two ends (25-25, 52-52), it seemed none of the two archers would let it go. It took a strong third end by Yong (10-10-9) to make the difference over Di Buo. At the end, the Chinese offers a new medal to his audience on the score of 108-104. Already qualified for the World Cup Final before this event, the Italian archer cannot be but proud of his shooting all the way to Shanghai.    Compound Men – Gold Medal Match – Dave Cousins (USA) vs. Jorge Jimenez (ESA) Dave Cousins part of the World Cup Final! The American archer seemed anxious on the field today in his match to Jorge Jimenez from El Salvador. Was it the perspective of winning his first World Cup Series or qualifying for the Grand Final that was disturbing him…? After a good start, though, he started to be irritated not hitting the 10 ring as often as he wanted. With an 8 in the last but one arrow, he could have been letting the match go, but a 7 by Jimenez put him back on the good path (114-109).   Compound Men – Bronze Medal Match – Sidi Neto Vitor (BRA) vs. Dominique Genêt (FRA) One bad arrow and bye bye Mexico… The first final in the individual Compound Men division was critical for one of the contending archers, the French Dominique Genêt: a victory would have definitely qualified him for the World Cup Final in Merida, Mexico. After a great start for both Sidi Neto and Genêt (both shot 10-10-10), no one had guessed that the second end would be decisive… Shooting an unfortunate 7 with his fifth arrow, the French lost all illusion to travel to Mexico in October. After Genêt’s bad shot, Sidi Neto lost no time taking the lead with another 10. He then never left his opponent get back and won the match 117-114.   Recurve Women – Gold Medal Match – Yun Ok Hee (KOR) vs. Yun Mi Jin (KOR) Shower of great scores for the Korean ladies! Yun Ok Hee and Yun Mi Jin proved once again - after their teammate Lee Tuk Young in the previous match - that they could shoot great scores even in very bad conditions. Rain intensifying in Ming Yang Park for the 4th World Cup Series did not stopped Yun Ok Hee to shoot 115 out of a possible 120 to gain gold over her homonym Yun Mi Jin. Shanghai winner and her compatriot Lee will meet Chinese Qian and Italian Tonetta in Merida next month for the Grand World Cup Final.   Recurve Women – Bronze Medal Match – Wu Hui Ju (TPE) vs. Lee Tuk Young (KOR) Lee Tuk Young adds a new medal to the Korean harvest Starting with an amazing 60 total with her first six arrows, Lee had already closed the match at the middle of it with a 10-point lead. Her opponent from Chinese Taipei could only do her best and applause the Korean bronze winner. The final score was 116 to 104. The young Korean archer, who was 3rd in Antalya, will go to the Grand Final in Merida in October with the goal of doing better that the bronze there.   Compound Women – Gold Medal Match – Sofia Goncharova (RUS) vs. Linda Ochoa (MEX) Hat trick for Goncharova in the 2006 World Cup! Amazing what has just achieved the Russian lady winning her third World Cup Series in a row! Goncharova will of course be in Mexico for the Great Final and will certainly be the woman to beat there. In her gold medal match in Shanghai she left no chance (116-107) to her Mexican opponent Linda Ochoa who created a kind of surprise getting to the final here. The latter, despite this 2nd place and an 11th rank in San Salvador will not be traveling to Mexico, the four qualified archers being two Russians (Goncharova and Kazantseva) and two Americans (Van Natta and Davis).   Compound Women – Bronze Medal Match – Jamie Van Natta (USA) vs. Anna Kazantseva (RUS) Kazantseva over Van Natta (USA) after two shoot-offs Rain has invited itself just for the beginning of the individual finals at Shanghai World Cup, decisive step for a qualification to the Grand Final in Mexico next month. Van Natta and Kazantseva proved once again that they are still very close to one another in terms of their actual level: the American finished 2nd both in Porec and El Salvador World Cup Series this year, while Kazantseva was 1st in Porec and 2nd in Antalya. The bronze medal here in Shanghai was hardly disputed between these two archers who were tied after the 12 regular arrows (110-110). A second shoot-off was then needed to decide the winner after both archers shot a 9 with their first arrow. The audience just thought Van Natta would come forward as her Russian opponent shot an 8. However, god knows what passed through Van Natta’s head when she released her last arrow and scored only a… 7!   Ludivine Maitre Wicki FITA Communication