The decision as to which team would finalise the list of competitors at the 2019 Pan American Games came down to the final whistle in Mexico City, when Canada secured first and with it the last women’s place at the Games in Lima, Peru.

 

With two wins each, Canada, Mexico and Chile finished on the same number of points, but Canada came out on top based on goal difference. Mexico finished with the silver medal while Chile clinched bronze ahead of the last participant in the four-nation event, Guatemala.

 

Canada’s gold medal came largely thanks to their decisive win over Chile on day two of the competition. After a loss in their opener versus Mexico, 26:29 (11:15), Canada beat Chile 22:16 (10:10) then took a commanding 26:17 (13:6) victory against Guatemala. Following their win over Canada, Mexico had added another victory to their record – 41:12 (20:6) versus Guatemala – and thereby entered the final match on the same number of points as Canada.

 

Meanwhile, Chile defeated Guatemala 30:22 (15:10) on the first day of the tournament, March 26. Their loss to Canada meant Chile were still in the race for the qualification place – but they would need a big win on the final day. And indeed, Chile won the final match but a 29:27 (13:12) victory was not enough for either them or Mexico to pass Canada on the ranking.

 

Canada thereby ranked first and joined the list of already qualified participants for the 2019 Pan American Games: Brazil, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Cuba and the United States. The Pan American Games will be played in Lima, Peru from July 26 to August 11, with the handball competition played from July 24 to August 3.

 

Ranking

 

1 - Canada

2 - Mexico

3 - Chile

4 - Guatemala

 

Photo: Mexican Olympic Committee/Mariano Rios