ROSARIO, Argentina - Seventeen medals, including nine gold medals. That's Team USA's final tally after a very successful week at the Pan American Championships and Parapan American Championships.
The United States not only delivered in the finals, but also qualified full teams for both the Pan American Games and Parapan American Games in Toronto next year.
There were nine categories in which the Americans clinched medals in the finals over the weekend, showcasing veteran and emerging talent.
Olympic medalists Jake Kaminski (Gainesville, Florida) and Khatuna Lorig (West Hollywood, California) - both of whom are strong international team performers but haven't had individual international wins in recent years - scored big in the gold medal matches.
Kaminski faced off with teammate and Rio 2016 Olympic hopeful Sean McLaughlin (Chula Vista, California) to take a 6-2 gold medal win, giving McLaughlin the silver. Lorig earned her gold medal after a close match versus Colombia's Natalia Sanchez, a tough competitor.
Team USA also saw several podium sweeps. In the recurve master women's category, American's Laura Shelton (Bethlehem, Pennsylvania), Candice Raines (Rutland, Vermont) and Karen Kroll (Sherman Oaks, California) took gold, silver and bronze respectively.
Eleven of USA's seventeen medals were earned by para archers.
Newcomer Carrie Burge (Weatherford, Texas) made a strong statement in her first international competition, winning gold in the compound para women's category versus teammate and silver medalist Martha Chavez (Tulare, California).
Burge also went on to clinch the compound mixed team gold medal with teammate Matt Stutzman (Salt Lake City, Utah).
In the recurve para men's division, both Tim Palumbo (Buffalo, New York) and Michael Lukow (Salt Lake City, Utah) ascended the podium, with gold and silver medals, respectively.
Paralympian Lee Ford-Faherty of Perry, Georgia - and teammate Kinga Kiss-Johnson - faced off for the gold medal in the recurve para women's group, with Ford-Faherty coming out on top.
The compound para men's category saw another All-American sweep, with Stutzman, Eric Bennett (Surprise, Arizona) and Ben Thompson (Ladson, South Carolina) winning gold, silver and bronze.
Also sweeping the podium: the para contenders in the compound men's W1, with Paralympians Jeff Fabry (Tulare, California), Jerry Shields (Gainesville, Florida) and Charles Lear (Lees Summit, Missouri) in first, second and third.
The wins closed out a fantastic week for the Americans in Argentina. For complete results from the Pan Am and Parapan Am Championships, visit: http://www.fatarco.com.ar/varios/Panamericano%20Rosario%202014/Resultados/index.php.
Cover photo: Archery 10 10 10 Magazine, as featured on WorldArchery.org
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