An San claims second World Cup crown after dramatic shoot-off in Nanjing
In spite of a surprise shoot-off call, An San’s eight was enough to halt Hsu Hsin-tzu and secure the recurve women’s trophy at the Nanjing 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final.
The Korean initially celebrated at the end of the fifth set, believing her three nines in the constant Chinese rain had sealed victory as Chinese Taipei’s Hsu dropped 10, eight and nine while trailing 5-3.
That appeared to make the final score 6-4 – and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Champion’s second circuit Final win – but target judge Laura Lynne Churchill, magnifying glass in hand, deemed Hsu’s second arrow to have just clipped the nine line, upgrading her end to 10,nine and nine and tying the contest at 5-5.
As An San went from thanking fans at the Nanjing Olympic Museum to staring in disbelief, the smile was wiped from her face.
Her next arrow, an eight, drew gasps from the crowd and briefly opened the door for 17-year-old Hsu to become Chinese Taipei’s first Archery World Cup Champion. Had An San blown it?
Luckily for the Korean star, her opponent’s final arrow landed low in the seven, confirming the victory.
“I’ve been to two World Cup Finals and I’ve won twice. I’m so happy,” said An San, whose first title came at Tlaxcala 2022. “This is the last tournament of the year, so I’m very happy to win.”
“I don’t have any other chances, so this World Cup Final was my last opportunity. I was like, ‘Got it. I’ve got it.’”
The drama at the target felt like déjà vu after what happened in Gwangju at this year’s Hyundai World Archery Championships – An San’s hometown.
In front of her home crowd, she let slip a strong lead in the semifinals against Korean teammate and eventual world champion Kang Chaeyoung – who beat the USA’s Casey Kaufhold for bronze this morning – and was denied a chance to contest the gold.
‘The Destroyer’ Kang fought back from 4-0 down at 5.18 Democracy Square to spoil any hopes of a homecoming celebration for An San.
There was less wind in Gwangju, and it was much warmer than the cool 15°C temperatures in Nanjing – yet the weight of expectation back home proved far greater.
This she revealed was the biggest difference between Gwangju and Nanjing.
“Gwangju is my hometown, so I felt a lot of pressure,” said An San. “Since I hadn’t won a single individual medal [this year], I came to Nanjing determined to return home as a winner.”
This season has brought mixed emotions for the Olympic Champion. Her return to the Korean team included a 6-0 defeat to Lim Sihyeon in the Antalya 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup gold medal match – another moment she’ll want to forget – but she now heads home fulfilled, her superstar status once again confirmed.
Should the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games runner-up retain her place in Korea’s fiercely competitive national line-up, there’s no doubt she’ll continue to draw huge fan support – many of whom she stayed an hour after the match to greet, signing memorabilia and posing for photos.
The Nanjing 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final concludes this afternoon with the recurve men’s matches, streamed live on archery+.
Final ranking: Recurve women
An San, Korea
Hsu Hsin-tzu, Chinese Taipei- Kang Chaeyoung, Korea
Casey Kaufhold, USA
Li Jiaman, China
Penny Healey, Great Britain- Zhu Jingyi, China
Michelle Kroppen, Germany
