South American Games: “The crowd's backing makes us feel at home” | OneFootball

This was stated by the medalists from Santa Fe who are part of the teams that won medals this Monday in gymnastics and fencing. Looking to make the most of their home advantage, they highlighted the presence of students and the full stadiums. “The support from the home crowd lifted our spirits and boosted our performance,” they agreed.

The 13th South American Games Santa Fe 2026 continue to move forward steadily across the province, bringing together more than 4,000 athletes from 15 countries in search of continental glory. They are competing in 43 sports and 60 disciplines, in an event that also grants direct qualification for the Lima 2027 Pan American Games in 26 specialties, raising the level of demand each day. Argentine athletes are looking to use their home advantage against the powerhouse nations they face, and along that path, Monday was a great day for the sky-blue-and-white medal count, which collected 21 medals, 9 of them gold, with athletes from Santa Fe playing leading roles in gymnastics, fencing, and swimming.

From Santa Fe to the world

At the Arena Invencible in Rosario, the Argentine artistic gymnastics team won four medals: two gold and two bronze. One of the gold medals was earned by the team made up of Emilia Acosta, Isabella Ajalla, Fila Dalinger, María Delfina Estoco, Rocío Saucedo, and Julieta Lucas, who ended Brazil’s 32-year dominance. Julieta Lucas won the other gold in the individual all-around, while Emilia Acosta took bronze by finishing third.

The gymnasts celebrated this Tuesday in the Rosario Olympic Village the medals they won after months of intense training, dedication, sacrifice, and discipline, highlighting “the support and unity of the team” as decisive factors. “We felt the support of the crowd, which makes us feel at home,” said the Argentines, who also praised the organization of the Games. “For the individual competitions, we will stay focused on our personal goals, but without stopping supporting each other as a team,” they stressed.

The other bronze medal came from the men’s artistic gymnastics team, made up of Ivo Chiapponi, Luca Alfieri, Daniel Villafañe, Nahuel Pardo, Matías Coralizzi, and Santiago Mayol. Reflecting on the achievement, Alfieri said that “as a local, being able to experience this and enjoy these sporting achievements makes me feel happy with the whole team,” and assured that the goal is to “go toe-to-toe with the powerhouses” in order to “win as many medals as possible and leave Argentina at the top.” The gymnast from Rosario highlighted what it means for him to compete with the support of the crowd from his city: “It pushed us forward, and I think our results were no coincidence—the crowd was part of our performance,” while acknowledging that they hope to keep counting on “all that energy, which helps us so much when we compete, since it’s not common to compete at home,” in addition to highlighting “the Argentine fans, who always have something special.”

Home support makes itself felt

Meanwhile, fencing events continued at the Salvador Bonilla stadium at Club Atlético Provincial. In the men’s individual foil, Augusto Servello won the gold medal by defeating his compatriot Andrea Nigosanti 15-10, who took silver. Both emphasized that it was an extremely high-quality competition, in which they were able to display their best skills and deliver an outstanding final between two Argentines. “We were able to fence really well, bring out our best weapons, and show the highest level we could,” said Servello.

Nigosanti described the day as “incredible” because of the support from the Argentine crowd, which he said “was felt strongly, it lifted our spirits and our emotions too.” The athletes placed great value on the presence of students and the full stadium: “The home support lifted our spirits and improved our performance, although at some moments we had to ask them to lower the chanting so we could hear the referee’s instructions,” they agreed, while also noting that “we rarely compete in front of so many people, and this experience can bring new spectators closer to fencing.”

The full and updated schedule can be found at santafe2026.ar, where visitors are also advised to check for possible changes to times or venues before attending. To enter the sports venues and take part in the Games’ activities, it is necessary to download the free QR code available on the official website. The same code grants access to the Fan Fest and the other Games venues and is valid throughout the day.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.