Santiago 2026: Regional stars return to Chilean capital in pursuit of continental glory
Seasoned and emerging archers from across the continent will compete for honours at the South American Championships, held alongside the second leg of the 2026 Grand Prix of the Americas in Santiago, Chile, from 20-23 May.
Held annually, the South American Championships return after last year’s edition in Medellín, Colombia, which was staged alongside a world ranking event. With the 2027 Pan American Games on the horizon — a potential qualification pathway to the LA28 Olympic Games — the competitions in Santiago offer valuable preparation and international exposure in the build-up to Lima 2027.
A total of 88 archers — 57 men and 31 women — representing 26 nations, including national teams, clubs and athletes from South America, Central America, North America and Asia, will compete across recurve, compound and barebow divisions for both continental and Grand Prix honours.
While only South American member associations are eligible for the continental championships, the Grand Prix of the Americas remain open to all participants.
Host nation Chile leads the entries with 17 archers, followed by El Salvador with 12, while Brazil and Peru field 10 athletes each.
Sofia Paiz, silver medallist at Gwangju 2025, is among the standout names in the field. She is joined by compatriot Roberto Hernandez, El Salvador’s most decorated compound archer.
The host nation’s medal hopes will rest on Olympians Andres Gallardo and Andres Aguilar, with the latter arriving in Santiago following his fresh gold-medal performance at the opening leg of the Grand Prix of the Americas in San Salvador.
Competition will be held at the National Stadium Complex in Santiago, Chile, a state-of-the-art public legacy venue that previously hosted the Santiago 2023 Pan American and Parapan American Games.
Key information
What’s happening? The South American Championships are held alongside the second leg of the Grand Prix of the Americas, at the National Stadium Complex in Santiago, Chile from 20-23 May.
What’s at stake? Continental titles, along with individual and team honours across recurve, compound and barebow events.
Who’s competing? A total of 88 archers (57 men, 31 women) from the national teams and clubs of the following countries are registered to compete at these championships: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Falkland Islands, India, Korea, Mexico, Peru, United States of America and Uruguay.
What’s the story? The competition offers valuable preparation and international exposure ahead of major events, including the Lima 2027 Pan American Games.
Schedule
- Wednesday 20 May: Recurve, compound and barebow qualifying and team eliminations
- Thursday 21 May: Individual and mixed team eliminations
- Friday 22 May: Individual and team finals - South American Championships
- Saturday 23 May: Individual and team finals - Grand Prix of Americas
How to watch
Watch live footage of the finals on Friday 23 May with a subscription to archery+.
Live scores will be available on the World Archery website, with coverage across World Archery’s digital platforms throughout the competition.
Who’s competing?
Full entries are available online.
These are the top-ranked archers competing in Santiago:
- Recurve men: Andres Gallardo, Chile (world rank: 56)
- Recurve women: Marcela Cortez, El Salvador (world rank: 128)
- Compound men: Roberto Hernandez, El Salvador (world rank: 31)
- Compound women: Sofia Paiz, El Salvador (world rank: 14)
Competition at the Santiago 2026 Grand Prix of the Americas and the South American Championships begin with qualifying on Wednesday.
