SHANGHAI, China - Opening the gold final at World Cup Shanghai with a perfect 60, Braden Gellenthien (Hudson, Massachusetts), Kris Schaff (Billings, Montana) and Reo Wilde (Pocatello, Idaho) showed once again why the USA compound men are #1 in the world. Dropping four points over the next two ends, USA was down one point to Korea going into the final six arrows, but experience and mental toughness won out and with another clean 60, USA took the gold.
Having won this stage now six times, USA compound men remain a dominant force on the circuit. However, it was Korea who took the top qualification slot by 29 points. "Korea is tough. They are training harder and harder every event and we can see it in their scores," Gellenthien told World Archery. "It was a battle and I think that they are going to be joining us and Denmark as one of the top compound countries in the world. We're looking forward to more matches like this in the future."
Gellenthien returned to the stage for the afternoon finals session to shoot for individual bronze against the Netherlands' Mike Schloesser. Ranked No. 2 and 3 in the world respectively, the match opened strong. Schloesser was up 30-29, then Gellenthien brought it back to a tie at 58-58. With an 8, Schloesser opened the door and Gellenthien took a 3-point lead and held strong to win 147-142.
Jamie Van Natta (Toledo, Ohio) also appeared on the finals stage after a second-place qualification with an impressive 700 and solid match wins. Shooting for bronze against Korea's So Chaewon, the two were neck and neck, tied at the half, but clean over the final nine arrows, Chaewon sealed victory 146-141. As Van Natta's highest individual finish since 2012, this is a great comeback and way to start the 2018 World Cup season.
The excitement continues tomorrow as Brady Ellison shoots for individual gold and mixed team bronze with Khatuna Lorig. Watch live at www.OlympicChannel.com/Live and follow USA Archery on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more from the event. Complete results from the competition can be found at www.worldarchery.org.
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