Plant City's (Tampa Bay Area) own Tracy Otto shoots for gold Sunday in Lima, Peru.
She's in the gold medal match of the W1 women's division at the Lima 2026 Para Pan American Championships, the continental championships for para archers across North, Central and South America. It's also the first chance to qualify for next summer's Parapan American Games, held in this same city.
The Match at a Glance
- What: W1 Women gold medal match
- When: Sunday, October 25 · 3:00 PM Eastern (2:00 PM in Lima)
- Who: Tracy Otto (USA) vs. Juliana Cristina Ferreira da Silva (Brazil), ranked No. 5 in the world
- On the line: the Americas title, which Tracy also won in 2024
How She Got to the Final This Week
Tracy qualified fourth on Thursday. Her teammate Kimberly Garcia, 19, topped the field, according to World Archery. Seeds only set the bracket, though. Saturday is where it counted.
- Quarterfinal: Tracy beat Chile's Mariela López Carrasco 7–3. It was a rematch of the 2023 Parapan American Games final, which Tracy also won.
- Semifinal: Tracy fell behind the top seed, Garcia, 0–4 after two ends. She won the third, tied the fourth, and closed with a 26 to win 6–4.
Garcia bounced back to win bronze, beating Colombia's Angie Alarcón Moreno 6–4. That's two Americans on the W1 women's podium.
How She Got Here at All
Tracy shot her first arrow in March 2021 at All People's Life Center in Tampa, with her first coach, Earl C. Brown. Today she trains at Adventures Archery in Tampa with coach Matt Hall. W1 is the classification for archers with the most impairment, and she shoots a compound bow with a release she triggers with her mouth.
- 2023: Won W1 gold at the Parapan American Games in Santiago, Chile, and earned the U.S. a quota spot for Paris, USA Archery reported.
- 2024: Won two golds at the Para Pan American Championships, individual and mixed team with Jason Tabansky.
- Paris 2024: Finished eighth in the individual W1 and sixth in the mixed team at her first Paralympic Games, per Team USA.
- Now: Aiming at LA 2028.
For the full story, in her own words, read our Thwacker Spotlight on Tracy.
Santiago 2023 gold. Image: @tracy_otto.
What's on the Line Beyond the Medal
This event awards the first 38 qualifying places for the Lima 2027 Parapan American Games, which run August 17–21, 2027. Three of those places are in W1, shared across men and women, World Archery says. Places go to countries based on the final rankings, so every match this week matters for next year.
Tampa Bay on the Line in Lima
Tracy isn't the only local archer wearing USA in Peru. She, Ryan Lindstrom, Catalina Bustamante and Travis Wyatt all shoot and train at Adventures Archery in Tampa, and Tracy, Ryan and Catalina have all trained with coach Matt Hall. Four national team athletes from one Tampa range is something to be proud of.
Ryan Lindstrom, W1 Men. Ryan is on the 2026 United States Archery Team. This year he repeated as W1 champion at USA Archery Indoor Nationals and set a new W1 men's 18-meter record, USA Archery reported. In Lima he beat fellow Adventures Archery shooter Travis Wyatt 6–4 in the quarterfinals, then fell to Canada's Spencer Arnold in the semifinals. He finished fourth after Saturday's bronze match against Canada's Daniel Comeau. Fourth in the Americas, and he's just getting going.
Travis Wyatt, W1 Men. Travis is a Navy veteran and a W1 archer living with ALS, as he puts it in his own words. He's already bringing gold home from Lima: on Friday he and Jason Tabansky won the W1 men's doubles title. In the individual event he qualified fourth, then met Ryan in a Tampa-on-Tampa quarterfinal that went to Ryan 6–4.
Catalina Bustamante, Para Compound Women. Catalina took the lead in para compound women at the 2026 Indoor Nationals, according to USA Archery. In Lima she finished ninth in the individual event and third in Friday's compound women's Parapan American Games qualifier, behind teammate Brandi Iannoli.
Know another Tampa Bay archer on this team? Tell us in the Thwack Life community and we'll give them their shout.
Team USA's Week So Far
- Gold: Kevin "KJ" Polish and Ephraim Tonn-Bourg, para compound men doubles
- Gold: Jason Tabansky and Travis Wyatt, W1 men doubles
- Bronze: Candice Caesar and Karen Sternfeld, para recurve women doubles
- Bronze: Ben Thompson, para compound men
- Bronze: Kimberly Garcia, W1 women
Three more Americans shoot for gold on Sunday: Tracy at 3:00 PM, Jason Tabansky in W1 men at 3:18 PM, and KJ Polish in para compound men at 3:54 PM, all Eastern.
How to Watch
- Live video: the finals stream on archery+, World Archery's official streaming service and the home of its major events since late 2023. It takes a paid subscription or event pass and plays in any web browser, no app needed.
- Why we link instead of embed: the stream sits behind an archery+ sign-in, so no outside site can play it, including ours.
- Live scores, free: follow every arrow on the official results page.
- Match Day Guide: every Team USA final in Eastern time and step-by-step archery+ help, in one place on our Match Day Guide.
- Cheer loud: post your support in the Thwack Life community and tag @tracy_otto.
The Bottom Line
Five years ago Tracy shot her first arrow at a rec center in Tampa. On Sunday she shoots for her second straight Americas title. Set a reminder for 3:00 PM Eastern, and let's bring her home a gold.
Want to back her road to LA28? Visit tracyotto.com.
Thwack Life Archery Addiction is a national culture-first community platform for U.S. target archers — recreational, competitive, and adaptive. No gatekeeping. No gear elitism. Just real archery.
References
Event and results
1. World Archery Americas / ianseo. Para Pan American Championships – Lima 2026: Schedule, Brackets and Medallists. Accessed October 24, 2026.
2. Joe Parker, World Archery. Para Pan American Championships Offer First Qualifying Spots for Lima 2027. October 19, 2026.
3. Joe Parker, World Archery. Campos Marzano Dominates Qualifying at Lima 2026. October 22, 2026.
4. USA Archery. International Event Opportunities. Accessed October 24, 2026.
Broadcast
5. World Archery. World Archery Launches Worldwide Streaming Subscription for 2024. December 2023.
6. Joymo. archery+ Help and FAQ. Accessed October 24, 2026.
Athletes
7. USA Archery. Otto Adds Another Quota Slot and More Gold as USA Tops the Medal Table at the Para Pan American Games. November 22, 2023.
8. Team USA. Tracy Otto, Athlete Profile. Accessed October 24, 2026.
9. USA Archery. Champions Confirmed After a Dramatic Final Weekend at the 57th USA Archery Indoor Nationals. 2026.
10. USA Archery. All Change at the Top as New Names Emerge at Indoor Nationals and JOAD Indoor Nationals. February 9, 2026.
11. USA Archery. United States Archery Team. Accessed October 24, 2026.
12. Travis Wyatt. @travis_jigsaw_wyatt, Instagram profile. Accessed October 24, 2026.
Images courtesy of Tracy Otto (@tracy_otto), used with permission. Event logo: Lima 2026 Para Pan American Championships.
0 comments