Actualités

Moscow 2019 competition preview #1: Compound women

30 août 2019

Moscow, Russia

Vrai nom:

Sara Lopez has won the last two – and four of the last five – compound women’s titles at the Hyundai Archery World Cup Final. That puts her tied with recurver Brady Ellison for the most in history.

But recently, Lopez has not enjoyed the dominance of her late 2017 and full 2018 seasons. She won the first stage of the year, in Medellin, but then came ninth in Antalya (her first finish outside the top eight since 2015) and third in Berlin.

Meanwhile, the line-up in Moscow includes reigning world number one Alexis Ruiz and the winner of the Hyundai World Archery Championships in 2019, Natalia Avdeeva.

It’s shaping up to be, perhaps, the most exciting competition in Moscow.

Factsheet #1: Compound women

Number of athletes: 8
Number of nations: 8
Defending champion: Sara Lopez, Colombia
World number one: Alexis Ruiz, USA
World champion: Natalia Avdeeva, Russia
Competition time: 1pm GMT+3 (local) Friday 6 September

Line-up

Alexis Ruiz, USA (number one seed and Berlin stage winner)
Sara Lopez, Colombia (number two seed and Medellin stage winner)
Toja Ellison, Slovenia
Tanja Jensen, Denmark
Sophie Dodemont, France
Danelle Wentzel, South Africa (Antalya stage winner)
So Chaewon, Korea (Shanghai stage winner)
Natalia Avdeeva, Russia (host representative)

3 Storylines

1) Three favourites. Sara Lopez, Alexis Ruiz and Natalia Avdeeva all arrive in Moscow holding a different title – defending circuit champion, world number one and world champion. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see any of them lift the trophy.

2) Wildcard. Talking of Avdeeva, she could cause trouble in Moscow. While Ruiz and Lopez will sit at either end of the bracket as the top two seeds at the tournament, Avdeeva could slot in anywhere after the random draw. Who wants to face the world champion, at home, in their first match? Nobody.

3) One event, one winner. Korean archer So Chaewon only competed at Shanghai this year. She only had one chance to qualify for Moscow and did so by winning that leg. That’s the kind of determined single-mindedness that’s required to win a Hyundai Archery World Cup Final.

She, like all the other compound women not named ‘Sara Lopez’ in Moscow, has never won the season-ending event. But it is her second consecutive appearance. Chaewon was third in Samsun last year.

Athletes

Data correct as of 30 August 2019. World ranking given is current. Average arrow score, match wins and tiebreak wins in international competition this season only.

Alexis Ruiz, USA

The only archer, regardless of category, to podium at all four stages of the Hyundai Archery World Cup in 2019. Winning in Berlin put Alexis into the top spot in the world rankings.

World ranking: 1
Average arrow score: 9.63
Match wins: 23-8 (72%)
Tiebreak wins: 0-2 (0%)

Sara Lopez, Colombia

The four-time Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion is going for a record fifth crown in Moscow. Lopez won this year’s stage in Medellin and is averaging the best per-arrow scores of her decorated career – and this roster – but that hasn’t translated into quite as many wins.

World ranking: 2
Average arrow score: 9.76
Match wins: 14-3 (82%)
Tiebreak wins: 3-0 (100%)

Toja Ellison, Slovenia

The winner of the first European Games to feature a compound competition this summer. Toja makes her second appearance at the Hyundai Archery World Cup Final, after Lausanne in 2014, this season.

World ranking: 10
Average arrow score: 9.66
Match wins: 13-8 (62%)
Tiebreak wins: 2-2 (50%)

Tanja Jensen, Denmark

Tanja, in her only previous Hyundai Archery World Cup Final in Rome in 2017, lost the final to Lopez. That was the last individual podium the 24-year-old recorded at a major outdoor tournament.

World ranking: 9
Average arrow score: 9.66
Match wins: 14-9 (61%)
Tiebreak wins: 1-2 (33%)

Sophie Dodemont, France

Berlin silver medallist Dodemont makes her second consecutive and third total trip to the season-ending event. She didn’t win a match in Paris or Samsun. At 46 years old, she’s the oldest archer in Moscow.

World ranking: 7
Average arrow score: 9.58
Match wins: 10-5 (67%)
Tiebreak wins: 1-1 (50%)

Danelle Wentzel, South Africa

The gold medal in Antalya was a career highlight – Wentzel’s first big win – and Moscow will be her first Hyundai Archery World Cup Final.

World ranking: 12
Average arrow score: 9.64
Match wins: 9-2 (82%)
Tiebreak wins: 1-0 (100%)

So Chaewon, Korea

Qualified after winning her one and only stage of the year in Shanghai. Chaewon was also runner-up at the Universiade this summer. The returning bronze medallist at the Hyundai Archery World Cup Final.

World ranking: 5
Average arrow score: 9.70
Match wins: 14-4 (78%)
Tiebreak wins: 2-0 (100%)

Natalia Avdeeva, Russia

Shooting at this Hyundai Archery World Cup Final as the representative of the host country, Russia, but Avdeeva has as good a shot as any archer on the list at the compound women’s crown. She won the indoor world championships in 2018 (the last, now the event has been discontinued) and then the outdoor world championships this year.