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No gold for Korean Taekwondo

December 16, 2013

Finishes with a disappointing 6th at World Taekwondo Grand Prix

Russia and host Britain finished 1-2

Russia’s Alexey Denisenko, left, and Canada’s Maxime Potvin exchange kicks during the men’s under-68-kilogram final match on the third and last day of the inaugural WTF World Taekwondo Grand Prix at the Manchester Central Convention Complex in Manchester, the United Kingdom, Monday (KST). Denisenko won to earn his country the gold medal. With no medals added on Monday, Korea finished a surprising sixth among 59 nations, without producing a single gold medalist. (Courtesy of WTF)

Korean Taekwondo has sunk to its lowest level.

The inaugural World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) World Taekwondo Grand Prix ended its three-day schedule in Manchester, Britain, Monday (KST), and Korea finished a surprising sixth among 59 nations, without producing a single gold medalist.

On the final day, Puebla World Championship gold medalists Lee Dae-hoon and Kim So-hui failed to make it to the semifinals in the men’s 68-kilogram and women’s under-57-kilogram divisions, respectively.

Korea’s haul of three silvers and a bronze is considered its worst performance ever in a major international event.

Russia topped the overall medal table with two golds, one silver and one bronze, followed by host Britain with two golds and one silver and Spain with two golds.

Korea came after Taiwan, which earned one gold and one silver, and Sweden with one gold.

At the event where 231 athletes from 59 nations participated, 14 Koreans competed in five different weight categories.

The annual event was designed to give opportunities to athletes around the world to compete between the Olympics and World Championships. The results of the Grand Prix are factored into rankings for the previously mentioned international competitions.

The Koreans’ poor showing at the contest is expected to generate calls for some of the coaches involved to be held accountable.