by Ian Marshall, Editor

No current world ranking, José You, from Honduras but resident in Chinese Taipei, was the biggest surprise name of all.

After accounting for Jamaica’s Kane Watson, the no.13 seed (11-2, 11-5, 11-3, 11-4), he caused a major upset by beating the host nation’s Hector Gatica, the top seed (12-14, 11-7, 4-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-7, 11-9) to reserve his place in the semi-finals.

“The last time we played was a few weeks ago at the Central Championships, where I won more comfortably; this time it became more difficult. He knew how to receive my services and he was good with service and first attack. I arrived a little early to get used to the altitude. It’s the second tournament I’m playing in Latin America so it was necessary to train a bit here before the event started.” José You

Impressive; that good form continued, José You ousted Venezuela’s Marco Navas, the no.7 seed (12-10, 10-12, 11-8, 10-12, 9-11, 11-9, 11-8), prior to overcoming Tyrese Knight of Barbados, the no.4 seed, in the title decider (11-6, 9-11, 11-4, 13-15, 11-7, 11-8).

“I was a little nervous because representing my country means so much. I’ve been living in Taiwan for 20 years. In each match I just thought of playing in a relaxed manner. Here we are high above sea level. I had many problems but I managed to recover; I wanted to succeed for Honduras. I am proud to be able to do this for my people, thank you all for your support; it makes me very happy to deliver this achievement for my country.” José You

Success for José You, in the corresponding group, it was success for Julian Ramos, the no.9 seed. He started his quest for honours by beating Bolivia’s Eduardo Lizarazu (11-7, 11-6, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8), prior to overcoming Guatemala’s Heber Moscoso, the no.10 seed (11-6, 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-6) and Panama’s Omer Avi-Tal, the no.8 seed (11-8, 11-3, 7-11, 11-8, 11-8) to secure his Lima place.

“I’m pleased that Colombia adds one more player to the Pan American Games, I am very happy to qualify. It’s a new experience; this is the last event before going to the Olympic qualifier, so one gains a lot of experience. We did not have the chance to play in the team event so this is the last opportunity; that’s why the preparation was very thorough. We knew there would be a good level here and there would be a lot of tension among the players because we all look for the same goal. Preparing for Lima, we will have a series of training camps for both men and women so that we arrive in the best way.” Julian Ramos

Four further places remain; these will be decided on Saturday 25th May.

Information

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Prospectus

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Schedule of Play

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Entries (as on Thursday 23rd May)

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Seeding (First Knock-Out)

Results

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Men’s Singles – Draw One – Results (Friday 24th May)

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Women’s Singles – Draw One – Results (Friday 24th May)

Draws

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Men’s Singles – Draw Two (Saturday 25th May)

Lima 2019 Pan American Qualification Tournament for Individual Events: Women’s Singles – Draw Two (Saturday 25th May)

Qualified Teams for Pan American Games

Host Nation
Men: Peru
Women: Peru

2018 Pan American Championships
Men: Brazil, United States, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina and Cuba
Women: Brazil, United States, Canada, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Argentina

2019 Caribbean Qualification
Men: Puerto Rico
Women: Dominican Republic

2019 Central America Qualification
Men: Guatemala
Women: Mexico

2019 North America Qualification
Men: Canada
Women: no nomination

2019 South America Qualification
Men: Ecuador
Women: Colombia

2019 World Ranking (May)
Men: Dominican Republic
Women: Chile, Mexico

Note: Canada and the United States both qualified for the for the women’s team event as a result of finishing in the top six at the 2018 Pan American Championships. Therefore, there was no nomination via 2019 North America qualification; thus as the second high team on the May 2019 world rankings, Mexico gained the final place.