Marcus’s rollercoaster career over the past decade has featured a long list of near misses and dips in form, but he has without question matured into an exceptional athlete. A key moment in that journey came when he won this tournament in Santiago in 2022, paving the way for 11 months as world number one in 2023.
Still, it has been a tricky year by his standards, with three indifferent individual performances at the Hyundai Archery World Cups in Puebla, Shanghai and Antalya – despite finally winning in Antalya last year at his ninth attempt in the city.
“Today when I woke up, I said, ‘It doesn’t matter who is next to me, I am going to do my job,’ and I know my level is very high, so I knew I could win,” he said.
In Tlaxcala, he narrowly beat Brady Ellison in a shoot-off, recording only his second victory over the American in six meetings dating back to 2014, before producing a crushing 6-0 win over surprise finalist Eric Peters.
More than the scoreline or even the result, it showed D’Almeida as a different competitor – less rattled by the occasional loose arrow, more clinical and, above all, with far greater trust in himself. It was a joy to watch and could prove the catalyst for another strong run of form for the Brazilian with LA28 beginning to loom.
Much of Marcus’s career has been about trying to fulfil extraordinary early promise without quite managing to do so. The Marcus we are seeing in 2026 looks like there is still plenty left in the tank.
