After 14 competition days, 79 matches and a staggering 521 goals, a hugely successful and entertaining Pan American Junior Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico has drawn to a close.
It proved to be a fantastic event for Argentina, who continued their domination of the Junior Pan American competitions by claiming Gold medals in both the men’s and the women’s competitions.
For the men, it was a stunning tenth consecutive Junior Pan American tournament triumph, having won every event since the first edition in 1978. They continued their remarkable winning streak by defeating Canada in Sunday’s tournament final, but they were pushed every inch of the way by their rivals from North America. Canada twice held the lead in the game, but Argentina ran out 3-2 winners thanks to goals from Joaquin Menini, team captain Gonzalo Peillat and Joaquin Coelho. As well as captaining his side to the title, it was a stunning tournament for Gonzalo Peillat who was named both Player of the Tournament and Tournament Top Scorer with a 15 goals to his name. The penalty corner expert has certainly marked himself as a player to watch over the coming years.
Although defeated, Canada will leave Guadalajara knowing that they achieved great things at the tournament, with a Silver medal being enough to secure qualification for the 2013 FIH Junior World Cup. A string of fine performances earned Canadian keeper Kevin Pereira the Goalkeeper of the Tournament title, suggesting that he has a very bright future ahead of him.
The men of Chile achieved a creditable third place finish thanks to a Golden Goal victory over USA in the Bronze Medal match. Normal time in the match finished with the scores tied at 2-2, before a 76th minute penalty stroke from Vincente Martin sealed a hard earned victory for Chile. The result means that Chile are now the first reserve for the 2013 FIH Junior World Cup and will take their place in the event should any team withdraw.
Very much like their male counterparts, Argentina women have been the team to beat in the women’s Pan American Games throughout the tournament’s history, having won five of the six previous editions of the competition. However, their winning run was ended in Mexico City in 2008 when they could only manage a third place finish behind eventual winners USA and second placed Chile.
Argentina cruised into the final with a crushing 6-0 win over USA, setting up a meeting with a Canada team that battled to a 3-1 triumph over Chile. Argentina went into the match as clear favourites due to their 6-0 victory over Canada in the group phase, but the final was to be a very different story. Canada matched their illustrious opponents until the 43rd minute of the match, when Julia Gomes rattled home the opening goal from a penalty corner. Gomes hit the target again 11 minutes later with another set piece, giving Argentina some much needed breathing space. With four minutes of the match remaining, Canada scored a penalty corner of their own when Karli Johansen fired home to set up a dramatic finale, but Argentina held firm to win their sixth Pan American Junior title.
Argentina captain Florencia Habif – a player who was part of the Las Leonas squad that took the Silver at the London 2012 Olympic Games – was named Player of the Tournament, while fellow Argentinean Sofia Belen Monserrat won the Goalkeeper of the Tournament award. Chile’s Manuela Urroz finished as the tournament top scorer thanks to ten strikes – five field goals and five penalty corners.
Three teams earned their place at the 7th women's FIH Junior World Cup, with USA joining Argentina and Canada as qualifiers thanks to a 2-1 win over Chile in the third place play-off. A brace of field goals from Nikki Parsley proved to be enough for the USA to claim the bronze medal.
To see a full list of results from the Pan American Junior Championship including reports, photos and official match sheets, please click on the links below.
The International Hockey Federation would like to congratulate the Mexican Hockey Federation for their superb hosting of the Pan American Junior Hockey Championships.
2012 Pan American Junior Championships
Guadalajara, Mexico
10-23 September 2012
Women - Final Standings
1. Argentina, 2. Canada, 3. USA, 4. Chile, 5. Uruguay, 6. Venezuela, 7. Mexico, 8. Trinidad & Tobago, 9. Paraguay, 10. Jamaica, 11. Brazil.
Argentina (1st), Canada (2nd) and USA (3rd) have qualified for 7th FIH Women’s Junior World Cup
Goal-keeper of the Tournament: Sofia Belen Monserrat (Argentina)
Top goal-scorer: Manuela Urroz (Chile) – 10.
Fair-play: Uruguay
Men - Final Standings
1. Argentina, 2. Canada, 3. Chile, 4. USA, 5. Trinidad & Tobago, 6. Mexico, 7. Barbados, 8. Uruguay, 9. Brazil, 10. Venezuela, 11. Jamaica, 12. Puerto Rico, 13. Guatemala.
Argentina (1st) and Canada (2nd) have qualified for the 10th FIH Junior World Cup. Chile (3rd) will be the 1st reserve country.
Player of the Tournament: Gonzalo Peillat (Argentina)
Goal-keeper of the Tournament: Kevin Pereira (Canada)
Top goal-scorer: Gonzalo Peillat (Argentina) – 15.
Fair-play: Barbados
