Canadian champion Phil Kim wins historic Pan Am gold

This 26-year-old Canadian from Vancouver, Phil Kim, defeated Jeff from the United States 3-0 in the final bout on Saturday. Kim said, "Honestly, the Olympic spot means more to me. I want to be there. I want to be part of history." He made his debut at the Pan Am Games in Santiago, Chile. Kim won the World Men's Championships in 2022. This year, he secured an Olympic quota spot by finishing second after losing in the final to Victor Montalvo of the United States.

Kim mentioned that he only needed to compete in the final on Saturday in Santiago to secure his place in Paris, as two American men failed to directly earn the Olympic quota through defeat. Kim said, "By making it to the final, I had already guaranteed my spot, but to be honest, it put more pressure on me because solidifying my place in Paris and then losing in the final was bittersweet." Kim, wearing a white uniform with a red headgear, scored 8-1 from the judges in his first bout. Kim emerged victorious in all six of his matches in Santiago. He injured his neck while warming up for the preliminary round on Friday and said he had a hard time sleeping the night before the elimination bouts on Saturday.

Canada now has 46 gold medals at these games, just one gold medal away from the national record for non-home Pan Am Games set in 1995 in Argentina. Canada's record for any Pan Am Games is 78 golds, set in 2015 in Toronto.

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