It’s been a tale of two categories in the compound competition at the 2017 Hyundai World Archery Championships.
On one hand, the men’s event has seen defending champion Stephan Hansen return to the big dance – with a chance at making history – while the women’s competition saw top seeds duck out early, and a first-time individual medallist guaranteed to take gold.
After team matches featuring the favourite Colombia women and the USA men, on a mission to reclaim a title coveted by the proud compound nation, these individual matches headline compound finals at the worlds in Mexico City.
Compound men’s gold final:
STEPHAN HANSEN 
/ SEBASTIEN PEINEAU 
/ 
No compound man has ever won two World Archery Champion titles since the discipline was introduced to the event in 1995. If there’s anyone in form to do it, it’s 22-year-old Stephan Hansen.
The world number one qualified top in Mexico City, then posted matches of 150, 150, 149 and 149 to make another world level gold medal match.
Up against reigning world indoor champion Seb Peineau, who spent the last offseason rehabbing an injury in his elbow, he won’t have a cakewalk – but the Frenchman won’t have many points to drop if he wants a chance of knocking off Hansen.
The Dane said after individual eliminations: “I always expect my opponent to shoot 148, so I have to shoot better.”
Advantage: Hansen
Compound women’s gold final:
YESIM BOSTAN 
/ SONG YUN SOO 
/ 
A final between the fifth and seventh seeds at these Hyundai World Archery Championships.
Bostan shot higher scores in eliminations, but Song defeated world number three Sarah Prieels and number one Sarah Sonnichsen in back-to-back matches.
The pair are evenly matched, both averaging 9.6 an arrow and in the mid-60s in match win percentage – but while the diminutive Song has only medalled with the Korean team internationally, Bostan has been steadily adding to her individual podium record.
With more experience in the arena, which will be loud in Mexico, the Turkish world number seven is the favourite in this final.
Advantage: Bostan
Compound men’s bronze final:
BRADEN GELLENTHIEN 
/ PJ DELOCHE
/ 
Recently-crowned Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion Braden has a shot at a third individual World Archery Championship medal in this bronze final, PJ a second.
Gellenthien has averaged 9.87 points per arrow in eliminations in Mexico City, Deloche 9.78
Advantage: Gellenthien
Compound women’s bronze final:
KRISTINA HEIGENHAUSER 
/ SARAH SONNICHSEN
/ 
Both these compound women’s bronze finalists are self-proclaimed punchers.
Germany’s Heigenhauser is only a few weeks removed from winning a silver medal at the World Archery 3D Championships… in the barebow division. The compound target world champions in 2013 has – in the interim – been diagnosed with and successfully treated cancer.
Sarah Sonnichsen, who’s risen to the top of the compound women’s division over the past two years, was world number one arriving in Mexico City.
After seeding sixth, she was cruising through her bracket until dropping a 142 in the semifinals and losing to Korea’s Song.
Heigenhauser’s scores weren’t as high, but she did win back-to-back shoot-offs in the third and fourth rounds, shooting a 10 both times.
Advantage: Sonnichsen
The 2017 Hyundai World Archery Championships run 15-22 October in Mexico City, Mexico.
