Canada's Tammara Thibeault wins Pan Am boxing gold in thrilling final

Story by CBC/Radio-Canada  • 

Canadian boxer Tammara Thibeault, left, celebrates her victory over Panama's Atheyna Bylon in their middleweight gold medal bout at the Pan Am Games in Santiago, Chile on Friday.

© Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press

Canada's Tammara Thibeault will arrive in Paris next summer looking to complete her golden collection.

The Shawinigan, Que., native beat Panama's Atheyna Bylon in the 75-kilogram final to win the Pan Am Games title on Friday in Santiago, Chile.

The two combatants were tied after two rounds, but Thibeault earned a unanimous decision in the third and final round to take gold.

"It means the world," Thibeault said. "Out of all the tournaments I've been to, I've been able to capture gold and I was missing Pan Ams. Now missing the Olympics, but hopefully we're on the right path and that's what we're going to get.

"I'm very proud of myself, very proud of my team. I couldn't have done it alone."

Thibeault, 26, also holds the 2022 world and Commonwealth Games titles.

She booked her spot at next summer's Olympics by winning her semifinal on Thursday. Now, she'll work toward improving on her Canadian women's record quarterfinal finish from Tokyo 2020.

"I expect to come out on top [at Paris 2024]. Expect to come out with a gold medal, and make history for Canada," Thibeault said.

In a rematch of last year's world championship, Thibeault and Bylon traded blows throughout. Despite their similar statures, contrasting styles turned the fight into a strategic battle, with the Canadian looking to aggressively attack while the Panamian preferred to pick her spots.

Related video: Tammara Thibeault looking to add Pan Am Games gold to her trophy case (cbc.ca) View on Watch

It was Bylon who held the advantage with three of five judges after the first round, prompting Thibeault to lean even further into her quick-strike ability. By the end of the second round, four judges had the tilt all-square, with one favouring the Canadian.

A tense final round saw the combatants take turns holding the seeming advantage, with Bylon controlling much of the pace. But a late flurry from Thibeault might have swung things the other way, and the Canadian emerged with a unanimous victory.

"We did know each other pretty well. She's s tricky boxy to fight. She's skilled. She's a little rough," Thibeault said. "I was a little disappointed in my performance today. I pulled off the win, yeah, but I could have boxed better.

"I would have cleaned it up a little bit, use straighter punches, less holding, work a little bit more on the inside, be smarter tactically and not let it get so messy and so close."

Thibeault now holds the 2-0 edge in title fights over Bylon — but the next one could be for the Olympic crown.

Later Friday, Wyatt Sanford of Kennetcook, N.S., will look to join Thibeault atop the boxing podium when he takes on Mexico's Miguel Angel Martinez in the men's 63.5kg final.

Live coverage of the Pan Am Games continues on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.

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