Nicolas Girard ended a multi-year outdoor title drought by capturing gold in the compound men’s individual event at Stage 3 of the 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup, held at Antalya Beach Park in Türkiye.
The 25-year-old Frenchman delivered a near-flawless performance in Saturday’s final, narrowly defeating USA’s Nick Kappers with a score of 157-154. It marked Girard’s first outdoor international individual medal since he claimed silver at the 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final in Tlaxcala.
Girard, known for his dominance on the indoor circuit, shot with remarkable precision in the final, recording eight 11s and six 10s, with only one arrow missing the 10-ring.
“I’m happy—it’s been a while now,” Girard said after the match. “I’ve had some difficulties over the last few years, especially outdoors. I trained well indoors to be able to reach a decent enough level to get here.”
Girard took control early in the match, leading 62-61 after the second end, and never relinquished his advantage. Kappers’ penultimate arrow—a nine—left little room to mount a comeback. Despite a strong final end from the American (10-10-11), Girard matched him point-for-point to tie the fifth end 31-31 and secure the victory.
“The penultimate arrow is always the hardest for me,” Girard admitted. “I was shaking a little. I made another good one, but it’s part of the game.”
Despite being seeded 28th after the 60-arrow qualification round on Wednesday—reflecting his reputation as an indoor specialist—Girard defied expectations with a composed and clinical outdoor showing in scorching Antalya heat. The victory also secures him a coveted spot at the World Cup Final in Nanjing this October, the flagship event of the international archery circuit.
Indoor Mastery, Outdoor Breakthrough
Girard has been a consistent presence on the indoor podium, winning four Indoor World Series medals annually over the past four seasons. His accolades include victories in Nimes, Lausanne, and Strassen, as well as a silver at this year’s Vegas Shoot. He also holds the title of European Indoor Champion.
“I think it was a success this week,” said Girard. “It’s true that I had a little difficulty with the qualifiers, but I was able to refocus on the essentials and that allowed me to get this far.”
Becerra Dominates in Women’s Field
In the compound women’s event, Andrea Becerra of Mexico continued her stellar 2025 campaign, claiming her second individual World Cup gold of the season with a commanding 159-151 win over Korea’s Han Seungyeon. Becerra, the world number two and 2023 World Championships silver medallist, nailed 10 11s in the final.
“I feel really happy. I think the 11s came through for me,” Becerra said. “I was really nervous, especially after the last match [against bronze medallist Alexis Ruiz], but I’m proud of how I turned it around and enjoyed it.”
Despite her individual defeat, Han helped lead Korea to gold in the compound women’s team final, where they overcame the Mexican trio of Becerra, Mariana Bernal, and Adriana Castillo.
With her dominant display in Antalya, Becerra—who already secured her place at the Nanjing Final by winning Stage 1 in Central Florida—cements her status as one of the sport’s rising stars.
Looking Ahead
The Antalya leg concluded with recurve team finals on Sunday morning, followed by individual recurve matches in the afternoon. All matches were broadcast live on Archery+, archery’s official streaming platform.
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