Roman among winners at Mexican Grand Prix

Olympic silver medallist Aida Roman was among the winners at the Mexican Grand Prix, a world and para world ranking event held in Cancun on 14-18 March, after she defeated teammates Mariana Avitia and Alejandra Valencia in her last two matches to claim gold.

“This is quite a difficult venue because the wind is very tricky. My expectations were to be in the top three,” said Roman.

“It was great to have so many archers here, including para archers. It’s great for the Mexican archery federation.”

More than 250 athletes from 12 countries attended the tournament.

Both Valencia and Avitia commented on the importance of the Mexican Grand Prix in preparation for their upcoming trials for the Central American and Caribbean Games.

“I feel technically strong,” said Valencia, who finished fourth at the Olympics in Rio. “I have been training hard and I am certain I will make the team.”

World number one Stephan Hansen won the compound men’s event, the second year in a row he has attended, and said that the venue in Cancun – including the nearby beach – was fantastic.

Hugo Franco, recently-crowned national champion in Cuba, won the recurve men’s competition by beating Mexican archer Carlos Rosa, 6-4, in the final and Mexico’s Maria Garza won the compound women’s gold medal with a seven-point victory over Sophia Strachan from the USA.

Kevin Mather, also from the United States, won the recurve men’s open competition. Para ranking titles also went to Kim Ran Sook and Jeong Jin Young, both of Korea, and Mexico’s Omar Echeverria.

The Mexican Grand Prix was the first major event held in the Americas in 2018.

The next world ranking event in the continent is scheduled to be held during the first week of April in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, with archers from 19 countries already registered for the opportunity to qualify for the Central American and Caribbean Games.

The 2018 Mexican Grand Prix took place on 13-18 March in Cancun, Mexico.

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