Vaunted Argentine racquet-wielder Iona Gualdi is happy with her performance in the recently concluded III South American Youth Games in Rosario.
The 17-year-old Gualdi, who came into the tournament with nagging back pain, fell short of a gold medal finish after losing in the women’s singles to Peruvian Fernanda Munar 9-21, 9-21.
However, she managed to regain her composure in the battle-for-third matches, beating the likes of Maria Da Cruz of Brazil 21-17, 16-21, 21-17, and Melanie Mandich of Ecuador.
“The singles match was very hard. I had a pain in my back, but I was able to win it and I am very happy with the results and the medal,” said the soft-spoken Gualdi in an interview with AAD journalist Joel Katz.
Meanwhile, Gualdi and doubles partner Ailen Oliva also finished with bronze in the doubles event after a lopsided loss to the Brazilian pair of Da Cruz and Juliana Viana 7-21, 5-21 in the semi-final round.
