At the end of the Yankton 2021 Hyundai World Archery Championships on Sunday, Kim Woojin wrapped up the competition by winning his third gold medal of the tournament and his third world championship triumph overall.
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Who is The Best Archer in The World
As one of two top-seeded archers, the Korean swept all of his competitions at Yankton. A third stood out by doing the seemingly impossible and defeating an industry titan.
Only the most exceptional archers can stand out from the largest pool of worldwide talent in the sport.
Here is our (entirely subjective) ranking of the top three worlds performances.
1: Casey Kaufhold
That group, who are they? American female with a recurve body shape.
In which location did they end up? A silver medalist in the women’s recurve individual competition.
To what end are they included here? In a stunning upset, Casey Kaufhold defeated three-time Olympic champion An San on route to a silver medal performance in the semifinals at the 2018 World Championships in Yankton. Kaufhold’s third-place finish at the world championships for the recurve women’s event was the first individual podium finish for the United States since Denise Parker in 1989, when An San was on track to duplicate her three golds from Tokyo. She is the only person this season, and the youngest ever, to have defeated the Olympic Champion.
2: Kim Woojin
That group, who are they? Korean archer who uses a recurve bow.
In which location did they end up? Winner of the solo, mixed, and team gold medals.
To what end are they included here? After leading Korea to triumphs in the recurve mixed and men’s team competitions, Kim Woojin became only the third man and fourth archer in history to win three individual world titles in Yankton. Kim, who won his first individual title a decade ago, led South Korea back to the top of the podium after two bronze medal finishes. With his incredible performance in Yankton, he has skyrocketed to even greater prominence in the sport at the tender age of 29.
3: Sara Lopez
That group, who are they? Latina from Colombia who lives in a compound.
In which location did they end up? Winner of three separate gold medals (individual, mixed, and team).
To what end are they included here? In Yankton, Colombia’s Sara Lopez had a faultless campaign, winning both the compound mixed and women’s team golds for her country and then taking home her maiden global title as an individual. She achieved this by shooting a flawless 150-point match in the semifinals, so becoming the first archer to win all three gold medals available.
Lopez had already competed in four world championships prior to the fifth, so this was her chance to cross off the missing title: “It was something list on my list,” she said, “and now I can remove it and set new goals.” The Hyundai Archery World Cup Final will be held in the same arena later this week, where Lopez will attempt to win a record-tying sixth title.
