DAKAR, Senegal – The USA pair of Aarya Arun and Ye-eun 'Grace' Whang are Youth Olympic Games champions after winning mixed team gold with a calm and convincing 5-1 win over France on Tuesday inside the Abdoulaye Wade Stadium.
Whang was also individual silver medalist in recurve women, only losing out on gold in a shootoff loss to number one seed Dunya Yenihayat (TUR) on Monday. Arun finished fifth in recurve men.
"Winning two medals feels fantastic," began Whang. "And I am so thankful for my family, Coach Hyang Soon Seo, Coack Haein Kim, and the many other people who have supported me since I first picked up the bow and fell in love with this sport."
Arun and Whang left their best until last in triumphing in the mixed team competition, the final event of the archery competition in Dakar.
They came through tough encounters against Slovakia and Australia (both 5-3 wins) before facing number one seeds Korea in the semifinals. That match went to a two-arrow shootoff, with the USA landing 20 to Korea’s 19.
Standing between the USA and gold were France, who had reached that stage with a 6-2 semifinal win over second seeds Turkey.
Arun from Virginia and Whang of California looked relaxed from the very start. The 16-year-olds shot scores of 38 for each of their three ends for a 5-1 win over a French team which contained men’s individual gold medalist Mael Lamouret and fifth-placed in the women’s event, Aurane Lapouge.
When the final arrow landed, the yelp of delight from both U.S. archers was audible. They had defeated the number one and number three seeds and return home as Youth Olympic Games champions.
Whang said, "I was really proud of how me and Aarya performed because we both shot amazing and stayed determined to win all the way through.
"Being Youth Olympic Champions mean that our many practices are paying off and winning gold is a huge milestone in our archery journey.
"When the last arrow landed, it felt like a dream and we were both super ecstatic. We had several strong shots because we were shooting for gold and not settling for anything else."
This marked only the fourth-ever Youth Olympic Games. Trenton Cowles won individual men’s gold in 2018, the last time the Youth Olympic Games were held. That medal was also the one and only won by the USA over the three previous editions.
Prior to the Games, Whang spoke of wanting to podium but to also embrace the experience. Arun’s focus was on having fun. They achieved both while being part of the first-ever Olympic event to be held on the African continent.
Click here for the full scores and results from the 2026 Youth Olympic Games.
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