Sunday, November 5th, 2023.- Breaking a record is always significant for any athlete. It allows them to etch their name in a select list and gain recognition for their hard work. At Santiago 2023, several records from the main continental event were broken and now have new owners.

The most recent one was achieved by the Argentinian Belén Casetta, who, until the last lap of the 3,000-meter steeplechase, appeared distant, even far from winning a medal. However, a spectacular final sprint allowed her to finish with a time of 9'39.47, surpassing the 9'41.45 set by the Canadian specialist Lynn Lalonde at Lima 2019.

In athletics, another record was broken. Canadian hammer thrower Ethan Katzberg, ranked number two in the world, achieved a throw of 80.96 meters, surpassing the American Johnson Kibwe, who had held the top spot since Guadalajara 2011 with a throw of 79.63.

Swimming was the discipline in which the most records were broken. American swimmer Rachel Stege, thanks to a strong finish in the 1,500 meters to overtake the local star Kristel Köbrich, completed 30 laps in the pool in 16'13.59, beating the 16'16.54 of the Argentinian Delfina Pignatiello at Lima 2019.

Furthermore, in the male's 4x200, the Brazilian team reduced the Pan American record they held to 7'07.53, the brilliant Canadian Maggie Mac Neil won the 100 meters in 53.64, displacing the Bahamian Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace and her 53.83 from Toronto 2015, while the Brazilian star Guilherme Costa set a time of 3'46.79 for the 400 meters.

Also, in a single day, records fell in the female's 100m butterfly with the Canadian Hannan Macneil (56.94), the male's 200m backstroke with the American Jack Aikins (1'56.58), and the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay with Brazil (3'23.78).

In recurve archery, the Mexican team of Aída Román, Ángel Ruiz, Alejandra Valencia, and Valentina Vázquez set a new record with 1,972 points.

In the 25m pistol event, their compatriot Alejandra Zavala won gold with a score of 29 shots, breaking the record of 27 shots set at the previous Lima 2019 Games by the Ecuadorian Diana Durango.

In an effort to extend the dominance of the United States in weightlifting, 20-year-old Olivia Reeves broke the junior Pan American record three times in the 81-kilogram category for the clean and jerk (leaving it at 144 kilograms), twice in the snatch (at 114 kilograms), and in the total (258 kilograms).

In the same discipline, in the 59-kilogram category, the Colombian Yenny Álvarez set the total record at 228 kilograms.

Written by Felipe Hurtado H; translated by Rocio Rojas / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
Photo by Jonnathan Oyarzún / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport