A GREAT 2025 COMES TO AN END FOR PAN AMERICAN SPORT

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A 2025 full of successes and triumphs for Pan American sports comes to an end. World champions, world records, and historic performances were delivered by Panam Sports athletes. If we were to show them all, we would run out of pages, but here are some of the most outstanding athletes who shone this season, placing not only their countries but the entire continent at the top of the world sporting elite.

The curtain is beginning to fall on 2025. It is time to take stock, to review and analyze what this season has been like in terms of sports, in the first year of the Olympic cycle after the Paris 2024 Games.

Our continent had an outstanding performance with its outstanding athletes, who thrilled us in different venues and competitions around the world.

Panam Sports would like to recognize some of the figures who shone in 2025 and thank them for bringing us so much joy, while also wishing all the athletes on our continent an excellent 2026. May this new year be full of success, medals, well-being, and good health for all of them.

Below we detail those who made headlines in 2025, in three categories: outstanding performances by men and women, and those who made history.

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES BY MEN

Hugo Calderano (Table Tennis-Brazil)
This year, this Brazilian table tennis player became the first athlete from his country and the continent to be crowned world champion in his sport, ending China’s hegemony. On April 20, he defeated local athlete Lin Shidong in the grand final and reached the top of the podium at the World Table Tennis Championships held in Macao, China. Hugo Calderano is considered the best table tennis athlete in the Americas of all time.

Osmar Olvera (Diving-Mexico)
After winning two Olympic medals in Paris in 2024, Osmar Olvera made history again for Mexican sport this year. On August 1, at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, he won the gold medal in the 3-meter springboard in a spectacular performance, defeating China’s 20-year supremacy at the top of the podium.

Ethan Katzberg (Athletics – Canada)
The Canadian hammer thrower is undoubtedly the undisputed king of his event. After winning gold at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, he successfully defended his world title. He won the gold medal in Tokyo 2025 with a throw of 84.70 meters and a new competition record.

Caio Bonfim (Athletics – Brazil)
In 2025, Caio Bonfim became one of the best athletes to compete in the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. In the 35 km walk, he took second place and a silver medal in an outstanding performance. Days later, he would be crowned World Champion in the 20 km walk, achieving a historic milestone for Brazilian sport by becoming the first athlete to win a gold medal in the walk.

Yeison López (Weightlifting-Colombia)
After winning a well-deserved silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, weightlifter Yeison López was determined to win the gold medal at the 2025 World Championships in Førde. In a great performance in the 88kg category, López won two gold medals and one silver, but that’s not all, as he also set a new world record in the snatch with 177kg.

Donnel Whittenburg (Gymnastics – USA)
At the last World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Team USA won a total of four medals: one gold, two silver, and one bronze. The only gold medal was thanks to the talent of Donnel Whittenburg on the rings. This was a historic event for the United States, as it was the first time it had celebrated a world champion on this apparatus.

Felipe Kluver (Rowing – Uruguay)
At the 2025 World Rowing Championships held in Shanghai, China, the best result for the continent was achieved by none other than a Uruguayan rower. Felipe Kluver, in a historic performance, took first place and the long-awaited gold medal in the men’s lightweight single sculls. This was the first medal won by Uruguay at a world rowing event.

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES BY WOMEN

Melissa Jefferson Wooden (Athletics-USA)
When everyone was betting on Julien Alfred or Sha’carri Richardson in the sprint events at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, the talented Melissa Jefferson Wooden of Team USA appeared to win every event she entered. She was the undisputed gold medalist in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relays. She won the 100m sprint with a spectacular time of 10.65 seconds, a new championship record and the fourth-best time in history for that distance.

Yareli Acevedo (Cycling-Mexico)
At the UCI Track Cycling World Championships held in Santiago, Chile, the best result for an athlete from the continent went to Yareli Acevedo, who, in the women’s points race, took first place and Mexico’s second gold medal in the history of the sport.

Summer Mcintosh (Swimming-Canada)
After triumphing at the Paris Olympics, Summer Mcintosh of Team Canada once again made headlines in international competition. It was at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. In that competition, Mcintosh became the star of the world championships by winning four gold medals and one bronze. The four golds were in the 400m freestyle, 200m medley, 200m butterfly, and 400m medley.

Génesis Reasco (Wrestling-Ecuador)
At the 2025 World Wrestling Championships in Zagreb, Ecuadorian athlete Génesis Reasco became the first wrestler from her country to win a gold medal at a world championship. In the 76-kilogram category, she defeated the number one ranked Aiperi Medet of Kyrgyzstan 4-2 in the grand final, in one of Ecuador’s most important sporting achievements of the year and in its history.

Andrea Becerra (Archery – Mexico)
The Mexican archer made history in 2025 by winning the gold medal in the women’s individual compound bow competition at the 2025 World Archery Championships in Gwangju. In the grand final, she defeated El Salvador’s Sofía Paiz 147 to 146. This is the first time a Mexican athlete has stood atop the podium in the history of the world championships in this sport. In addition to the individual gold, she won a gold medal in the women’s team event and a bronze medal in the mixed team competition.

Leyanis Pérez (Athletics—Cuba)
2025 has undoubtedly been the year of athlete Leyanis Pérez. The triple jump specialist was crowned Indoor World Champion in Nanjing, China, in March with a jump of 14.93 meters. Six months later, she repeated the feat at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo with a jump of 14.94 meters. The Cuban athlete also won the 2025 Diamond League Diamond, finishing first in the triple jump finals in Zurich, Switzerland.

Lee Kiefer (USA-Fencing)
After her two gold medals at the 2025 Paris Olympics in individual and team foil, Lee Kiefer would repeat that feat. At the 2025 World Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia, she won the only medal she had yet to conquer: the world gold in individual, in addition to the team gold. The seven-time Pan American Games champion has undoubtedly become one of Team USA’s most important and decorated athletes in recent times.

THEY MADE HISTORY IN 2025

Julia Paternain (Athletics- Uruguay)
At the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, she crossed the finish line without knowing the historic achievement she had accomplished. In the second marathon of her life, Julia Paternain surprised the whole world by winning the bronze medal with a time of 2 hours, 27 minutes, and 23 seconds, a new national record for her country. This was the first time in history that a Uruguayan athlete had stood on the podium at a global event. This is a remarkable feat for this athlete, who now dreams of an Olympic medal in Los Angeles in 2028.

Olivia Reeves (Weightlifting – USA)
The Team USA athlete shone at the 2025 World Weightlifting Championships in Forbe, Norway. In a solid performance, she won the gold medal in the 77kg category with no less than a triple world record in the snatch, clean and jerk, and Olympic total. Her amazing marks were: 123kg in the snatch; 155kg in the clean and jerk; and 278kg in the Olympic total. A truly impressive feat for this 22-year-old athlete.

Yulimar Rojas (Athletics-Venezuela)
The best athlete in the history of Venezuela was unable to compete in the last Olympic Games in Paris. An Achilles tendon injury suddenly took away her dream of defending her gold medal won in Tokyo. Many doubted whether she would be able to return to top-level competition. However, Yulimar did not give up, and with a lot of effort and passion, she focused on shining again at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo. In that competition, she demonstrated what a tremendous athlete she is, and with an outstanding performance, she managed to get on the podium by winning the bronze medal with a throw of 14.76 meters, just 18 centimeters short of the gold medal. Yulimar Rojas is a true example of overcoming adversity and resilience.

Juleisy Angulo (Ecuador-Athletics)
One of the biggest surprises at the last World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, was Juleisy Angulo. In a historic performance, she took first place and the gold medal in the javelin throw with 65.12 meters. Juleisy thus became the first Ecuadorian woman to win a gold medal at a World Athletics Championships.

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