Stetson Bardfield earns gold in R5 Mixed Air Rifle Prone SH2 at the 2023 Parapan America Games in Santiago, Chile, Nov. 20, defending his title from the 2019 Games.
“I am feeling amazing,” said Bardfield, a Tokyo Paralympian. “I was definitely a little anxious at the beginning. I have a lot of worthy competitors, but I stuck to my shot plan, and it ended up carrying me through.”
Bardfield shot a final score of 253.4, breaking the Parapan American Games record he formerly set in 2019. The 2020 Paralympian triumphed over Alexandre Galgani, of Brazil, who took second. When Bardfield and Galgani were the last two competitors in the final, there were just two single shots left to take. Bardfield only had a .1 lead before the finals two shots.
“I was just trying to hold on,” said Bardfield. “At any time a shot can go wrong, and any person can take [the lead] from you in an instant. It was a very intense experience.”
Bardfield mentioned that he could feel his heart beating fast but that his mindset was to just do as best as he can and see where it goes from there. His mindset paid off, as he has now earned back-to-back Parapan American Games titles. He earned his first title at the 2019 Lima Parapan American Games.
“These games were definitely more intense for me,” said Bardfield. “Lima was great but this time the scores and competition were higher.”
Bardfield said his favorite part about Santiago was the athlete village. He enjoyed the comradery from all the sports and countries present.
“It was an absolutely incredible experience,” said Bardfield. “It has been an honor to represent team USA and I hope to do it again in Paris.”
USA Shooting earned a total of seven medals at the 2023 Parapan American Games:
- YanXiao Gong: Gold, Mixed P3 25m Sport Pistol SH1
- Marco De La Rosa: Silver, Mixed P3 25m Sport Pistol SH1
- Mike Tagliapietra: Bronze, Mixed P3 25m Sport Pistol SH1
- Marco De La Rosa: Gold, P3 Men’s Air Pistol SH1
- YanXiao Gong: Bronze, P3 Men’s Air Pistol SH1
- Stetson Bardfield: Gold, R5 Mixed Air Rifle Prone SH2
- Kevin Nguyen: Bronze, R6 Mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1
For official results and scores, visit: https://para.results-santiago2023.org/#/discipline/SHO/schedule/daily/2023-11-18
USA Shooting would like to thank the NRA Foundation, our platinum level sponsor, for their support to the team. Their contributions are helping our athletes top the podium at the 2023 Parapan American Games.
