2026 Central American & Caribbean Games - Team Results

The team events concluded the racquetball competition at the 2026 Central American & Caribbean Games (CACGs) on Saturday in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Once again, Mexico won both the Men’s and Women’s Team events, as they have in every CACG since 1990. In the Men’s Team competition, Mexico beat Costa Rica in the final in two straight matches, while the Women’s Team competition required three matches to determine the winner with Mexico defeating Guatemala, two matches to one.

The team competitions are a best of three matches: two singles and a doubles match. The order of the matches varies across a draw, but the final is always the singles matches and then the doubles match, if necessary.

In the women’s final, Mexican Montserrat Mejia beat Guatemalan Maria Renee Rodriguez, 11-7, 11-5, 11-7, first, and then Guatemala’s Gabriela Martinez defeated Mexico’s Alexandra Herrera, 12-10, 11-7, 11-9, which was a rematch of the Women’s Singles final that Herrera won.

The tie-breaking third match was also a rematch, as Mexico won gold over Guatemala in the Women’s Doubles final, and so it was again as Herrera and Mejia beat Martinez and Rodriguez, 11-4, 11-6, 11-9.

In men’s play, Mexican Rodrigo Montoya led off against Costa Rican Gabriel Garcia, winning 11-6, 12-10, 11-7, and Montoya’s team-mate Eduardo Portillo needed five games to fend off Andrés Acuña, 11-2, 7-11, 11-5, 10-12, 11-6, and close out the final.

The semi-final and quarterfinal matches were all won two straight with one exception. In the men’s quarterfinals, Cuba upset the home country of Dominican Republic in three matches. In the first match, Maykel Moyet of Cuba eked out a win against Dominican Ramon De Leon, 10-12, 11-9, 2-11, 11-8, 15-13. Luis Perez of the Dominican won the second match in three straight games, defeating Yandy Espinosa, 11-7, 13-11, 11-7, to force a deciding doubles match.

Espinosa and Moyet won a close four game match against Perez and Junior Rodriguez, 11-5, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10, to win the quarterfinal for Cuba, and get on the podium by making the semi-finals.

Central American & Caribbean Games History

With three silver medals at this year’s Central American and Caribbean Games, Guatemala’s Gabriela Martinez is now has 13 CACG medals, which is the 2nd most racquetball medals in Central American and Caribbean Games history behind only Dominican Claudine Garcia’s 14. However, she has yet to win gold at the games, which Garcia did once in Women’s Singles in 1993.

Martinez’s 13 medals is just ahead of Mexican greats Paola Longoria, Javier Moreno and Alvaro Beltran, but all of Longoria’s and Moreno’s 12 medals were gold, as were 10 of Beltran’s. Also, Costa Rican Andrés Acuña has tied those Mexicans on 12, after he won four medals at this games, including his first gold CACG medal.

The Central American & Caribbean Games are part of the quadrennial of international games that lead up to the Summer Olympic Games. The next level of games in the Americas is the Pan American Games, which will be played next year in Lima, Peru in July and August, and racquetball will be included in those games.

XXV Central American & Caribbean Games
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic - July 25 - August 1, 2026

Women’s Team - Final

Mexico d. Guatemala, 2-1

Match 1: Montserrat Mejia (Mexico) d. Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala), 11-7, 11-5, 11-7
Match 2: Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala) d. Alexandra Herrera (Mexico), 12-10, 11-7, 11-9

Match 3: Alexandra Herrera & Montserrat Mejia (Mexico) d. Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala), 11-4, 11-6, 11-9

Women’s Team - Semi-finals

Mexico d. Dominican Republic, 2-0
Guatemala d. Costa Rica, 2-0

Women’s Team - Quarterfinals

Mexico - BYE
Dominican Republic d. Venezuela, 2-0

Costa Rica d. Cuba, 2-0
Guatemala - BYE

Men’s Team - Final

Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Gabriel Garcia (Costa Rica), 11-6, 12-10, 11-7
Eduardo Portillo (Mexico) d. Andrés Acuña (Costa Rica), 11-2, 7-11, 11-5, 10-12, 11-6

Men’s Team - Semi-finals

Mexico d. Guatemala, 2-0
Costa Rica d. Cuba, 2-0

Men’s Team - Quarterfinals

Mexico - BYE
Guatemala d. Honduras, 2-0

Cuba d. Dominican Republic, 2-1
Costa Rica d. Venezuela, 2-0

Follow the bouncing ball….

2026 Central American & Caribbean Games - Individual Results

The 2026 Central American & Caribbean Games (CACGs) began a week ago in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and the racquetball competition started last Saturday. Six countries are competing: Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, as well as the host Dominican Republic. The team competition is still in process, but the five individual competitions - men’s and women’s singles and doubles as well as mixed doubles - have concluded.

Mexico won four of the five individual events with Costa Rica preventing a Mexican sweep by winning Mixed Doubles.

Alexandra Herrera was a double gold medalist, as she won gold in Women’s Singles and Women’s Doubles with Montserrat Mejia. Herrera defeated Guatemalan Gabriela Martinez in the singles final, 11-6, 12-10, 11-9. It was Martinez’s 3rd silver medal in singles at the CACGs. In doubles, Herrera and Mejia defeated Martinez and Maria Renee Rodriguez in the final, 11-8, 11-4, 11-6, which was a repeat of the 2023 final. Thus, this is the 2nd consecutive title for Herrera and Mejia, and it’s the 4th consecutive silver medal for Martinez and Rodriguez.

In men’s play, Mexican Rodrigo Montoya beat team-mate Eduardo Portillo in singles, 11-4, 11-4, 11-6, which was a reversal of the 2023 CACGs final, when Portillo defeated Montoya. Portillo and Andree Parrilla won doubles by beating Guatemalans Christian Aldana and Juan Salvatierra in the final, 11-1, 12-10, 11-8. Mexico has won every men’s doubles title at the CACGs going back to 1990.

Montoya had a chance at a second gold medal, as he and Jessica Parrilla were in the Mixed Doubles final, but they lost to Costa Ricans Andrés Acuña and Larissa Faeth, 6-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-9. This is just the second time Mixed Doubles has been part of the CACGs, and Mexico were the defending champions.

Other matches of note. Costa Rican teen-ager Larissa Faeth defeated Mexican Montserrat Mejia, 11-7, 11-13, 11-6, 11-7, in the quarterfinals of Women’s Singles, which is probably the largest upset of the tournament. Also, Guatemalans Christian Aldana and Juan Salvatierra coming back from 2-1 down to defeat the Costa Rican brothers Andrés and Sergio Acuña, 11-6, 8-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-5, in the Men’s Doubles semi-final was another significant upset.

Racquetball was first included in the Central American and Caribbean Games in 1990. Since then, Mexico has won gold in singles at all but two games: 1993 and 1998. Fabian Balmori of Venezuela won Men’s Singles in both those years, while the Women’s Singles titles went to Claudine Garcia of the Dominican Republic in 1993 and Anna Maldonado of Puerto Rico in 1998. Mexico has won gold in Men’s and Women’s Doubles at every Central American and Caribbean Games.

XXV Central American & Caribbean Games
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic - July 25 - August 1, 2026

Women’s Singles - Final

Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala), 11-6, 12-10, 11-9

Semi-finals

Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Maria Cespedes (Dominican Republic), 11-9, 11-8, 11-4
Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala) d. Larissa Faeth (Costa Rica), 12-10, 11-7, 11-2

Quarterfinals

Alexandra Herrera (Mexico) d. Jimena Gomez (Costa Rica), 11-4, 11-5, 11-1
Maria Cespedes (Dominican Republic) d. Mariana Tobon Gordon (Venezuela), 7-11, 11-7, 11-0, 11-3

Larissa Faeth (Costa Rica) d. Montserrat Mejia (Mexico), 11-7, 11-13, 11-6, 11-7
Gabriela Martinez (Guatemala) d. Andrea Reyes Perez (Guatemala), 12-10, 11-7, 11-2

Women’s Doubles - Final

Alexandra Herrera & Montserrat Mejia (Mexico) d. Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala), 11-8, 11-4, 11-6

Semi-finals

Alexandra Herrera & Montserrat Mejia (Mexico) d. Larissa Faeth & Jimena Gomez (Costa Rica), 11-2, 11-3, 11-2
Gabriela Martinez & Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala) d. Maria Cespedes & Alejandra Jiménez (Dominican Republic), 11-4, 13-11, 11-2

Men’s Singles - Final

Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Eduardo Portillo (Mexico), 11-4, 11-4, 11-6

Semi-finals

Eduardo Portillo (Mexico) d. Ramon de Leon (Dominican Republic), 8-11, 11-5, 10-12, 11-4, 11-8
Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Andrés Acuña (Costa Rica), 9-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8

Quarterfinals

Eduardo Portillo (Mexico) d. Luis Perez (Dominican Republic), 11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 11-6
Ramon de Leon (Dominican Republic) d. Gabriel Garcia (Costa Rica), 17-15, 11-9, 11-2

Rodrigo Montoya (Mexico) d. Juan Salvatierra (Guatemala), 11-2, 11-8, 11-4
Andrés Acuña (Costa Rica) d. Hector Sierra Mansilla (Guatemala), 11-4, 11-4, 13-11

Men’s Doubles - Final

Andree Parrilla & Eduardo Portillo (Mexico) d. Christian Aldana & Juan Salvatierra (Guatemala), 11-1, 12-10, 11-8

Semi-finals

Andree Parrilla & Eduardo Portillo (Mexico) d. Luis Perez & Junior Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), 11-4, 11-4, 11-4
Christian Aldana & Juan Salvatierra (Guatemala) d. Andrés Acuña & Sergio Acuña (Costa Rica), 11-6, 8-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-5

Mixed Doubles - Final

Andrés Acuña & Maricruz Ortiz (Costa Rica) d. Rodrigo Montoya & Jessica Parrilla (Mexico), 6-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-9

Semi-finals

Andrés Acuña & Maricruz Ortiz (Costa Rica) d. Ana Cardentey & Maykel Moyet Suarez (Cuba), 14-12, 12-10, 11-2
Rodrigo Montoya & Jessica Parrilla (Mexico) d. Christian Aldana & Maria Renee Rodriguez (Guatemala), 9-11, 14-12, 11-9, 9-11, 11-8

Follow the bouncing ball….

Medal summary for 2025 IRF World Junior Championships

Several players were multiple medalists last week at the 36th International Racquetball Federation (IRF) World Junior Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and two players won three gold medals.

In Girls U18, Mexican Yanna Salazar won gold in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, while in Boys U16 Bolivian Alfredo Santiago Borja Arevalo also won gold all three divisions. No one did so in U21, suggesting that competition increases as players get older, as it should.

Three other players won three medals. Mexican Andrea Perez Picon was the silver medalist in Girls U16 singles, and bronze medalist in both doubles, mixed doubles. Costa Rican Alvaro Guillen was silver medalist in both Boys U16 doubles and mixed doubles and a bronze medalist in singles. Finally, Guatemalan Isabella Wer was a bronze medalist in Girls U16 singles and doubles and bronze medalist in U18 mixed doubles.

Here’s a rundown of all the multiple medalists.

Multiple Medalists - U21

Camila Rivero (Bolivia), Gold singles, Silver mixed doubles
Rebecca Amaya Ardaya (Bolivia), Gold doubles, Silver singles
Jorge Gutierrez (Mexico), Gold doubles, Bronze singles
Sebastian Hernández (Mexico), Gold doubles, Bronze singles
Naomi Ros (USA), Gold mixed doubles, Bronze doubles
DJ Mendoza (USA), Gold mixed doubles, Bronze doubles
Angela Veronica Ortega Sabido (Mexico), Silver doubles, Bronze singles

Multiple Medalists - U18

Yanna Salazar (Mexico), Gold singles, Gold doubles, Gold mixed doubles
Mariafernanda Trujillo (Mexico), Gold doubles, Bronze singles
Marco Mamani Aguilar (Bolivia), Gold singles, Silver mixed doubles
Eder Renteria (Mexico), Gold doubles, Silver singles
Diego Romano (Mexico), Gold doubles, Bronze singles
Natalia Mendez Veizaga (Bolivia), Silver doubles, Silver mixed doubles
Leyton Gouldie (Canada), Bronze doubles, Bronze mixed doubles
Chloe Jauvin (Canada), Bronze doubles, Bronze mixed doubles

Multiple Medalists - U16

Alfredo Santiago Borja Arevalo (Bolivia) - Gold singles, Gold doubles, Gold mixed doubles
Luciana Illanes Quenta (Bolivia) - Gold singles, Silver doubles
Larissa Faeth (Costa Rica), Gold doubles, Silver mixed doubles
Suszel Andrea Pairo Galileo (Bolivia), Gold mixed doubles, Silver doubles
Sebastian Terrazas (Bolivia) - Gold doubles, Bronze singles (U18)
Andrea Perez Picon (Mexico), Silver singles, Bronze doubles, Bronze mixed doubles
Santiago Castillo (Mexico), Silver singles, Bronze doubles
Alvaro Guillen (Costa Rica), Silver doubles, Silver mixed doubles, Bronze singles
Isabella Wer (Guatemala), Bronze singles, Bronze doubles, Bronze mixed doubles (U18)
Axel Sanchez (Mexico), Bronze doubles, Bronze mixed doubles

Here are the overall medal totals by country.

Bolivia - 8 Gold, 7 Silver, 6 Bronze
Mexico - 5 Gold, 4 Silver, 8 Bronze
USA - 1 Gold, 5 Bronze
Costa Rica - 1 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze
Guatemala - 1 Silver, 4 Bronze
Ecuador - 1 Silver, 1 Bronze
Canada - 3 Bronze
Chile - 2 Bronze

While Bolivia went home with more medals than Mexico (21 to 17), Mexico had more multiple medalists than Bolivia: 10 to 8, which suggests that Mexico’s success was concentrated in fewer players than Bolivia’s.

Four other countries had multiple medalists. Canada, Costa Rica and the USA had two each, while Guatemala had one.

Future international competitions

2026 is a IRF World Championship year, and Canada was to be the host. However, issues with the proposed venue have put that into jeopardy. Thus, there isn’t a confirmed host country presently. Nor is there any dates listed for the Worlds on the IRF website.

There also isn’t a venue listed for either the 2026 Pan American Championships or the 2026 IRF World Junior Championships on the IRF website. But there are dates for the Pan Am Championships: March 27 to April 4, as that competition is held during the week before Easter.

The 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games - a quadrennial multi-sport games that includes racquetball - will be July 24 to August 8 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. World Juniors was probably a trial event for those games, although many events have been held in Santo Domingo since they built the facility used for these events for the 2003 Pan American Games.

Those dates will limit when Worlds can be scheduled, because they wouldn’t want to conflict with those games.

Thus, there’s some uncertainty about upcoming IRF events, which isn’t ideal, but this has happened before, and things have worked out, so we trust that they will again. However, it would be better to have things decided sooner than later.

XXXVI IRF World Junior Championships 

December 6-13 - Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Girls U21 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Camila Rivero (Bolivia)
Silver: Rebecca Amaya Ardaya (Bolivia)
Bronze: Andrea Gabriela Reyes Perez (Guatemala) and Angela Veronica Ortega Sabido (Mexico)

Girls U21 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Valeria Miranda Martinez & Rebecca Amaya Ardaya (Bolivia)
Silver: Angela Veronica Ortega Sabido & Ivanna Balderrama (Mexico)
Bronze: Sinai Diseth Risso Cortes & Paula Mansilla (Chile) and Ella Boaz & Naomi Ros (USA)

Boys U21 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Jonathan Fernando Flores Vega (Bolivia)
Silver: Nicolas Ramiro Iglesias Rivera (Bolivia)
Bronze: Jorge Gutierrez (Mexico) and Sebastian Hernández (Mexico)

Boys U21 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Jorge Gutierrez & Sebastian Hernández (Mexico)
Silver: Hector Sierra Mansilla & Jose Caceres (Guatemala)
Bronze: Luis Aguilar & Ezequiel Subieta (Bolivia) and DJ Mendoza & Cole Sendrey (USA)

Mixed Doubles U21 - Medalists

Gold: DJ Mendoza & Naomi Ros (USA)
Silver: Jhoel Alexis Acha Portugal & Camila Rivero (Bolivia)
Bronze: Martin Carchi & Maria Angela Villacreses (Ecuador) and Jaime Mansilla & Paula Mansilla (Chile)

Girls U18 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Yanna Salazar (Mexico)
Silver: Nicol Abril Mansilla Tambo (Bolivia)
Bronze: Mariel Montecinos (Bolivia) and Mariafernanda Trujillo (Mexico)

Girls U18 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Yanna Salazar & Mariafernanda Trujillo (Mexico)
Silver: Natalia Mendez Veizaga & Adriana Noelia Blacutt Conde (Bolivia)
Bronze: Lahni Buller & Chloe Jauvin (Canada) and Rebecca Christopher & Montserrat Torres (USA)

Boys U18 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Marco Mamani Aguilar (Bolivia)
Silver: Eder Renteria (Mexico)
Bronze: Diego Romano (Mexico) and Sebastian Terrazas (Bolivia)

Boys U18 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Eder Renteria & Diego Romano (Mexico)
Silver: Martin Carchi & Juan David Sea Cueva (Ecuador)
Bronze: Leyton Gouldie & Raphaël Guillemette (Canada) and Josue Farfan Enriquez & Marco Mamani Aguilar (Bolivia)

Mixed Doubles U18 - Medalists

Gold: Nicolas Galindo & Yanna Salazar (Mexico)
Silver: Marco Mamani Aguilar & Natalia Mendez Veizaga (Bolivia)
Bronze: Christian Aldana & Isabella Wer (Guatemala) and Leyton Gouldie & Chloe Jauvin (Canada)

Girls U16 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Luciana Illanes Quenta (Bolivia)
Silver: Andrea Perez Picon (Mexico)
Bronze: Isabella Wer (Guatemala) and Nicol Abril Mansilla Tambo (Bolivia)

Girls U16 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Giuliana Faeth & Larissa Faeth (Costa Rica)
Silver: Luciana Illanes Quenta & Suszel Andrea Pairo Galileo (Bolivia)
Bronze: Paula Aldana & Isabella Wer (Guatemala) and Lily Farias & Andrea Perez Picon (Mexico)

Boys U16 Singles - Medalists

Gold: Alfredo Santiago Borja Arevalo (Bolivia)
Silver: Santiago Castillo (Mexico)
Bronze: Alvaro Guillen (Costa Rica) and Sebastian Ruiz Michel (Bolivia)

Boys U16 Doubles - Medalists

Gold: Sebastian Terrazas & Alfredo Santiago Borja Arevalo (Bolivia)
Silver: Alvaro Guillen & Marcelo García Sanchez (Costa Rica)
Bronze: Santiago Castillo & Axel Sanchez (Mexico) and Evan Whitley & Grant Williams (USA)

Mixed Doubles U16 - Medalists

Gold: Alfredo Santiago Borja Arevalo & Suszel Andrea Pairo Galileo (Bolivia)
Silver: Larissa Faeth & Alvaro Guillen (Costa Rica)
Bronze: Vaishant Mangalampalli & Aanshi Thakur (USA) and Andrea Perez Picon & Axel Sanchez (Mexico)

Follow the bouncing ball....