Preview: Archery World Cup trophies on the line in Tlaxcala
The 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final will take place on 15-16 October in a temporary arena constructed in the central square of the Mexican city of Tlaxcala.
It is there that 32 of the season’s best archers are set to compete for archery’s highest annual honour.
Among them are Olympic Champions, world champions, reigning circuit champions – and more than a few surprises, athletes with nothing to lose against their experienced peers. Four will be crowned as winners of the 16th season of the Hyundai Archery World Cup.
Below is everything you need to know ahead of the competition. Want to dive deeper? Check out our beginners’ guide to the tournament.
Key information
What’s happening? The 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final on 15-16 October in Tlaxcala, Mexico.
What’s at stake? Four Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion titles.
Who’s competing? A total of 32 athletes – eight each recurve men, recurve women, compound men and compound women – from 17 countries. Among them are Olympic Champions An San and Mete Gazoz, reigning World Archery Champions Kim Woojin and Sara Lopez, and world number ones Ella Gibson and Brady Ellison.
Schedule
- Thursday 13 October – Match draw
- Friday 14 October – Familiarisation
- Saturday 15 October – Compound finals (women morning, men afternoon)
- Sunday 16 October – Recurve finals (women morning, men afternoon)
How to watch
Coverage of the 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final is being shown worldwide by broadcast partners. Check local listings on CCTV (China), Claro Sports (Mexico and Latin America), Eleven (Chinese Taipei), Eurosport (Europe), SpoTV (Korea and Southeast Asia), SETIndia (Indian subcontinent) and TRT (Turkey).
The event is being streamed live by the Olympic Channel in other territories.
Live scores will be available on the World Archery website, and there will be coverage on World Archery’s digital platforms throughout the competition.
Defending champions
- Recurve men: Jack Williams, USA (not qualified)
- Recurve women: Lisa Unruh, Germany (now retired)
- Compound men: Mike Schloesser, Netherlands
- Compound women: Sara Lopez, Colombia
Line-up
Archers qualified for the 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final by winning one of the circuit’s four stages in Antalya, Gwangju, Paris or Medellin – or by climbing up the tour ranking with consistent finishes. Mexico is reserved one space in each event as the host nation.
The two archers listed in bold are the top seeds. The remainder will participate in the random match draw.
| Recurve men | Recurve women | Compound men | Compound women |
|---|---|---|---|
Kim Woojin Korea | Choi Misun Korea | Mike Schloesser Netherlands | Ella Gibson Great Britain |
Miguel Alvarino Spain | An San Korea | Mathias Fullerton Denmark | Sara Lopez Colombia |
| Kim Je Deok Korea | Katharina Bauer Germany | Jean Philippe Boulch France | Alejandra Usquiano Colombia |
Mauro Nespoli Italy | Kuo Tzu Ying Chinese Taipei | Jean Pizarro Puerto Rico | Dafne Quintero Mexico |
Mete Gazoz Türkiye | Bryony Pitman Great Britain | Nicolas Girard France | Lisell Jaatma Estonia |
Marcus D’Almeida Brazil | Peng Chia-Mao Chinese Taipei | Braden Gellenthien USA | Kim Yunhee Korea |
| Brady Ellison USA | Agu Utano Japan | James Lutz USA | Tanja Gellenthien Denmark |
| Jesus Flores Mexico | Alejandra Valencia Mexico | Miguel Becerra Mexico | Andrea Becerra Mexico |
Storylines
Recurve men: Brady Ellison’s a five-time Hyundai Archery World Cup Champion but he’s been largely off the pace of world’s best in 2022. Instead, it’s three-time circuit winner (and three-time world champion) Kim Woojin who’s seemed to find yet another gear in this post-pandemic season. Look for the ascendent Marcus D’Almeida or Olympic Champion Mete Gazoz to challenge Woojin, should he give them a chance.
Recurve women: Arguably the most open of the events in Tlaxcala, Korean duo Choi Misun and Olympic Champion An San remain the presumptive favourites. Choi won last time this event was held in Mexico in 2015. Katharina Bauer has had a breakout season – but can she find that one extra step to convert her podiums to a win?
Compound men: Mike Schloesser’s going for his fourth career trophy and third in a row in Tlaxcala. He’s beatable – but he’s still the man to beat. It would be great to see Miguel Becerra have a shot. The reigning champion of the World Games shot a miss in his final in Medellin, after beating Mike in the semis, and has the talent to win this despite appearing on a host nation ticket.
Compound women: Yes, there are eight archers in this category and, yes, we could have a shock winner. But realistically, this is the greatest compound woman of the last decade versus the woman who’s knocked her off that pedestal by refusing to lose in 2022. Sara Lopez versus Ella Gibson – and as the number one and two seeds (so automatically inserted at the two ends of the draw) they can only meet in the final.
The 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final will take place on 15-16 October in Tlaxcala, Mexico.
