High-Performance
Canada Sweeps the Podium at the 2021 Pan American Junior Games
December 1, 2021
Brian Yang and Rachel Chan win 3 gold medals at the first edition of Pan Am Junior Games held in Cali, Colombia, from November 26 to 29.
Yang, starting as seeded 1, reached the Men’s Singles crown after defeating players from Ecuador, El Salvador, United States and Brazil. In the Final, He faced Uriel Canjura (ESA) winning in a straight games. Jonathan Matias (BRA) and Luis Montoya (MEX) had an outstanding performance during this competition, reching the 3/4 positions of the MS event.
Rachel won the first place of the Women’s Singles event. She defeated players from El Salvador, Dominican Republic, United States and Brazil to reach the final, and after 3-games-match (14-21, 215, 21-15), Chan defeated Natalie Chi (USA) in the final, winning the gold medal for Canada. The bronze medals were for Ines Castillo (PER) and Juliana Vieira (BRA) who showed a great performance during this championships, reaching semifinals and a medal for their countries.
In Mixed Doubles, the canadian duo won the first place after defeating pairs from Costa Rica, Guatemala, Brazil and El Salvador. The final was against Uriel Canjura and Fatima Centeno (ESA), and after a great match the canadian duo won in straight games (21-13, 21-14). Jonathan Matias/Jaqueline Lima (BRA) and Nicolas Oliva/Iona Gualdi (ARG) won the bronze medals after reaching the semifinals of the event.
"We are incredibly proud of our athletes" said Nation Team Head Coach, Mike Butler. "Our athletes came ready to perform with the objective of winning each event and qualifying for the 2023 Pan Am Games - mission accomplished! Big thank you to coach Jennifer Lee for leading our team at the Games, and helping our athletes reach their goals."
Written by Badminton Pan Am