The Istmeña woman won the medal by beating the Ecuadorian Daniela Rodríguez.
Panama achieved its first medal in the IV South American Youth Games 2026with the outstanding performance of Danna De León, who won bronze in the -44 kg category of judo, in competitions held at the Irving Saladino Sports City.
De León began her journey in the tournament by advancing to the quarterfinals, where she was beaten by Argentina’s Brisa Mercado. However, the Panamanian judoka reacted in the repechage, beating the Chilean Dominique Barra to stay in the fight for the podium.
In the decisive fight for the bronze medal, De León showed determination and achieved victory against the Ecuadorian Daniela Rodríguez, thus securing the first medal for the Panamanian delegation in the regional competition.
For his part, Ian González also had an outstanding performance in the -55 kg category. The Panamanian debuted with a victory against the Bolivian Adrián Toledo in the round of 16, but then fell in the quarterfinals against the Venezuelan Nelson Martínez.
González managed to recover in the repechage by beating the Paraguayan Giovanni Paciello, which allowed him to compete for the bronze medal. However, he was surpassed by the Brazilian Mohammad Hauache, finishing in fifth position.
