Uriel Francisco Canjura Artiga (born 12 September 2000) is a Salvadoran badminton player.[4][5] He is a bronze medalist at the 2023 Pan American Games; and also the silver medalists at the 2023 and 2024 Pan Am Championships.
| Uriel Canjura | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | El Salvador | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 September 2000 Suchitoto, El Salvador.[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 55 kg (121 lb)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Men's singles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 49 (7 November 2023) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 52 (27 August 2024) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| BWF profile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career
editCanjura started playing badminton at the age of 9, when his stepfather Andrés Ardón, who was also a member of the Salvadoran Badminton Federation, became his first coach. Initially, he used to play soccer but later switched to badminton. Developing his skills in the sport, he went on to represent El Salvador at the 2018 Youth Olympics, where he was also chosen to be the flag bearer for his country. He studied general high school at the Agustina Charvin School in San Salvador and graduated in 2018. In his career so far, he has won international titles in El Salvador, Brazil, and Suriname, besides winning a silver medal at the Pan American Championships in 2024.[6] Canjura qualified to compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics,[7][8] and became the first ever Salvadoran badminton player at the Olympics.[9] He was assigned as the country flag bearer during the parade of nations in the 2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony.[10]
Achievements
editPan American Games
editMen's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Olympic Training Center, Santiago, Chile |  Brian Yang
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11–21, 10–21 |  Bronze
|
[11] |
Pan Am Championships
editMen's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Palacio de los Deportes Carlos "El Famoso" Hernández, San Salvador, El Salvador |  Kevin Cordón
|
18–21, 21–18, 13–21 | Bronze
|
| 2023 | G.C. Foster College of Physical Education and Sport, Kingston, Jamaica | Brian Yang
|
10–21, 5–21 |  Silver
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| 2024 | Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium, Guatemala City, Guatemala | Kevin Cordón
|
21–14, 17–21, 13–21 | Silver
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Junior Pan American Games
editBoys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Pacific Valley Events Center, Yumbo, Valle, Colombia | Brian Yang
|
8–21, 6–21 | Silver
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Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Pacific Valley Events Center, Yumbo, Valle, Colombia |
 Fátima Centeno
|
Brian Yang Rachel Chan
|
13–21, 14–21 | Silver
|
BWF International Challenge/Series (5 titles, 5 runners-up)
editMen's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | El Salvador International |  Howard Shu
|
21–11, 11–21, 21–13 |  Winner
|
| 2021 | El Salvador International |  Donnians Oliveira
|
21–14, 21–12 | Winner
|
| 2022 | Brazil International |  Bernardo Atilano
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21–17, 21–15 | Winner
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| 2022 | Guatemala International |  Giovanni Toti
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20–22, 20–22 |  Runner-up
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| 2022 | Peru International | Jonathan Matías
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12–21, 15–21 | Runner-up
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| 2022 | El Salvador International | Kevin Cordón
|
21–18, 21–23, 21–18 | Winner
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| 2023 | Peru International | Fabio Caponio
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11–21, 18–21 | Runner-up
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| 2023 | Suriname International | Giovanni Toti
|
21–11, 21–12 | Winner
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| 2024 | El Salvador International | Mark Shelley Alcala
|
14–21, 21–23 | Runner-up
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Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Guatemala Future Series | Fátima Centeno
|
Jonathan Solís Nikté Sotomayor
|
15–21, 12–21 | Runner-up
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- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF International Series tournament
- BWF Future Series tournament
BWF Junior International (3 titles, 1 runner-up)
editBoys' singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Guatemala Junior International |  Andrés Ramírez
|
21–12, 21–19 | Winner
|
| 2016 | Colombia Junior International |  Christopher Martínez
|
21–17, 21–10 | Winner
|
| 2018 | Mexican Junior International | Fabrício Farias
|
19–21, 14–21 | Runner-up
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Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Colombia Junior International | Fátima Centeno
|
 Yamit Gironza Tatiana Muñoz
|
21–12, 22–20 | Winner
|
- BWF Junior International Challenge tournament
- BWF Junior International Series tournament
- BWF Junior Future Series tournament
References
edit- ^ Acosta, Sara (16 December 2023). "El Salvador cuenta los días para ver en París 2024 al jugador de bádminton Uriel Canjura". Infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Uriel Canjura – Biographical information". Olympedia. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ "Canjura Artiga Uriel Francisco". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ "Uriel Francisco Canjura Artiga". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ "Uriel Canjura el badmintonista de plata panamericana forjado en Suchitoto". National Institute of Sports of El Salvador. 10 December 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ "Uriel Canjura". El Salvador Olympic Committee. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ Pizarro, Carlos (21 April 2024). "Uriel Canjura: El orgullo salvadoreño en los juegos olímpicos de Paris 2024" (in Spanish). Radio France Internationale. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ "El bádminton, con Uriel Canjura, pone a El Salvador en París" (in Spanish). SWI swissinfo. 14 April 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
- ^ "Paris 2024 Olympic Games qualifiers finalised". Badminton World Federation. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
- ^ Escalante, Varinia (21 July 2024). "El abanderado Uriel Canjura ya viaja a París" (in Spanish). Elsalvador.com. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ "Uriel Canjura recibe medalla de bronce para El Salvador en los Panamericanos Santiago 2023". El Gráfico (El Salvador) (in Spanish). 25 October 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2024.