Ricardo Ávila and Mariecarmen Rivera grab early control of the gold-medal chase.
Monterrico, Guatemala — July 8, 2025 — Day 5 of the PASA Games Guatemala 2025 kicked off the SUP Race discipline, sending 19 men and 15 women paddling their hearts out on the picture-perfect Chiquimulilla Canal lagoon, ringed by dense jungle. Under searing heat, both divisions completed two laps of a 1.5-km course that forced a buoy turn at the canal’s mouth—right where the ocean’s whitewater poured in.
Women’s race
Mariecarmen Rivera blazed through the two laps in 18 min 28 sec, not only topping the women but clocking the fastest time of the entire field. Argentina’s Juliette Duhaime stayed close at 19:14. Rounding out the Top 5: Brazil’s Jessika Matos (20:34), Argentina’s Alma Coleta (20:57), and Brazil’s Roseli Krepel (22:31).
Men’s race
Ricardo Ávila crossed in 18 min 35 sec for the win, edging Brazilians David Leao (18:53) and Rudah Bosi (18:56) in a photo finish. Peru’s Itzel Delgado (19:10) and Puerto Rico’s Omelv García (19:24) filled out the Top 5.
The second race on the same course runs tomorrow. Competitors rest Thursday and return Friday for the third and final heat; the best overall average secures the Pan-Am title.
‘Mimi’ finds her smile again
Nothing prepared Ecuador’s Dominic “Mimi” Barona for losing her beloved brother Israel a little over a year ago. Surf—and family—became her path forward. “This is my escape, to keep motivating my family. I do it for my brother, ‘Isra’,” she said after an impressive debut in women’s shortboard, hammering backside turns for a 14.34 heat total, the day’s best.
Barona knows El Rosario well—she won an ALAS Global Tour stop here a month ago—and she raved about the conditions: “All the planets aligned for almost perfect surf.” Other shortboard standouts: Barbados’s Chelsea Tuach, Mexico’s Maya Mateja, Peru’s Catalina Zariquiei, Argentina’s Victoria Muñoz, and Chile’s Estela López. Fresh off the Ballito Challenger in South Africa, Peru’s Daniella Rosas arrived just in time, taking her heat with 6.57 points over Panama’s Enilda Alonso (4.93) and local Darlyn Ramírez (4.90), who drops into repechage.
What’s on tap tomorrow
Along with the second SUP Race, Wednesday features Women’s Shortboard Repechages 1-2 and the Men’s Longboard Repechage. First call: 9 a.m. The junior exhibition series also resumes, part of PASA’s push to grow surfing among Guatemalan youth.
Top single-wave score: Dominic Barona (ECU) — Women’s Shortboard — 7.67
Top heat total: Dominic Barona (ECU) — Women’s Shortboard — 14.34
Watch every heat live at www.pasasurf.org
About the Event
The PASA Games Guatemala 2025 Surf Festival is produced by ASOSURF, the Confederación Deportiva Autónoma de Guatemala, and the Guatemalan Olympic Committee, with vital support from the Municipality of Taxisco (Santa Rosa), Naturalmente Santa Rosa, Hoteles Dos Mundos, Hotel Pazífico, Johnny’s Place, El Faro Hotel, Hotel El Delfín, Dulce y Salado Hotel, Mangoya Jungle, Hidravida, Maya Jade, Hawaiian Paradise, Hotel San Gregorio, Maya Internacional Transporte Turístico, Utz Tzava Beach Hotel, Marbella Ecolodge, Hotel Honolulu, and One Pixel.
About PASA — Pan American Surf Association
Founded in 1992, the Pan American Surf Association (PASA) governs and promotes surfing across the Americas. Affiliated with the International Surfing Association (ISA) and recognized by Panam Sports, PASA runs Pan Am Games qualifiers, champions surfing’s Olympic pathway, strengthens national federations, and inspires the next generation throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America.