Sara Lopez Wins 11th World Cup Gold After Year Away

Sara Lopez covered her face and cried after shooting her way back to the top of archery's biggest stage, one year after stepping away from World Cup competition.

The Colombian compound archer won gold at the Puebla 2026 World Cup in Mexico on April 11, posting an extraordinary 149 out of 150 points in both her semifinal and final matches. Her semifinal against Mexican hometown favorite Dafne Quintero was so close it required a sudden-death shootoff, with thousands of local fans cheering every arrow.

Lopez's final arrow landed in the spider (the very center of the target) to clinch the win. In the gold medal match, she repeated her near-perfect 149 score to defeat Estonia's Lisell Jaatma by just one point.

"The emotion I felt was the same emotion I felt when I won my first World Cup back in 2013," Lopez said through tears. "I feel like that 18-year-old girl who won her first World Cup."

The victory marks Lopez's 11th stage win and ninth World Cup Final qualification, more than any archer in history in any category. She also holds the world championship title from 2021.

Why This Inspires

What makes Lopez's return so remarkable is her mindset. After scoring 696 in qualifying rounds, many athletes would celebrate a strong comeback after 12 months away. Lopez called it "horrible" and said she was "devastated."

"Even in my worst, I'm still in the top five," she told herself, turning disappointment into motivation. She used practice time to prepare mentally, trusting her experience even when facing three sudden-death shootoffs on her path to gold.

That refusal to settle for anything less than excellence has defined her career. Now she's already looking ahead to the 2026 circuit finale in Saltillo, where she'll compete for her 10th World Cup Final trophy.

When asked if she thinks she'll win it, Lopez smiled: "I know I'm going to get it for sure. I don't know when. It's just a matter of time."