Nanjing: Seventeen-year-old Taiwanese archer Hsu Hsin-tzu secured a silver medal in the recurve women's individual event at the Nanjing 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final, following a dramatic shoot-off against South Korean Olympian An San.
According to Focus Taiwan, Hsu was the sole Taiwanese archer to qualify for this year's world cup final. She demonstrated remarkable skill by first defeating Li Jiaman of China with a score of 6-5 in the quarterfinal and then overcoming Casey Kaufhold of the United States 7-1 in the semifinal.
In the final match, Hsu faced a formidable opponent in An San, who had previously claimed three gold medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. An led the first four sets, placing Hsu behind with a score of 5-3. The fifth set saw both archers receiving a point from a tied 28-point set scored with three arrows each, bringing the score to 6-4.
The match saw a turn when target judge Laura Lynne Churchill ruled that Hsu had edged out An in the final end with a score of 28-27, leveling the match at 5-5 and prompting a single-arrow shoot-off. In the decisive moment, Hsu struck the seven-point ring while An hit the eight-point ring, securing the gold for the South Korean archer.
After the competition, Hsu expressed her determination, stating, "Participating in the world cup final for the first time was nerve-wracking, but I have confidence in myself. Although I fell short this time, I believe I will be able to get back up soon."
This achievement marks the second time in six years that a Taiwanese competitor has won silver in the women's recurve competition at the annual Archery World Cup Final, following Tan Ya-ting's second-place finish in 2019. Hsu's coach, Wu Ying-nan, praised her progress and expressed confidence in her continued improvement.
Prior to this event, Hsu, a student at New Taipei Municipal San Min High School, had already made a mark by winning a silver medal in the recurve women's individual event at the Archery World Cup in Spain and a gold medal in the women's recurve team event at the World Archery Championships in Gwangju, South Korea.