Para Taekwondo Wows at 1st-Ever Para Grand Prix

‘No Easy Matches Anymore’

That was the sentiment shared by coaches, athletes, and media alike as 85 of the world’s top Para Taekwondoins gathered in Sofia, Bulgaria for the sport’s inaugural Grand Prix event. With G-6 points on the line – the most of any event this season – Para Taekwondo’s best put on a show in a no-frills event held in the Bulgarian capital. In total, 85 athletes from 24 countries, plus one refugee athlete, participated in the invitation-only event.

Some veterans cemented their statuses as medal favouritesfor Paris 2024, while a few newcomers put the world on notice that it won’t be easy for anyone to win that coveted Paralympic Games title.

Para Taekwondo’s developing depth was on display as favourites fell as early as the quarterfinals and medal round matchups were both competitive and strategic, with several decided on the final kick.

In all, 19 countries from four continents managed to medal at this high-calibre tournament – a testament to the global appeal of one of the world’s fastest-growing Para sports.

In addition, refugee athlete Zakia Khodadadi, who made international headlines for her frightening escape from Afghanistan to compete at Tokyo 2020, managed to win bronze at her first Grand Prix event.

In the quarterfinal, she faced Six-Time World Champion Vika Marchuk – who had a harrowing escape of her own from Ukraine – in a rematch from the Paralympic Games, where Khodadadi lost despite leading in two rounds.

“I had a lot going on in my head [in Tokyo]. I’m unsure what happened. didn’t even know what to do – not block, not kick,” she said. “Now I don’t have any stress. I’ll do better than Tokyo.”

Turkiye led the medal table with six in 10 events, including Grand Prix Gold Medalists Ali Can Ozcan, Mahmut Bozteke and Meryem Cavdar.

‘Winning a Grand Prix Has Always Been My Dream’

The best-on-best format of the Grand Prix ensured there were plenty of Paralympic and world championship grudge matches.

Uzbekistan’s reigning Paralympic and World Champion Guljonoy Naimova continues to show that she’s top of class in the +65kg category by again getting past Great Britain’s former World Champion Amy Truesdale 15-10 in the latest compelling clash between these two great fighters.

Alongside Mexico’s Juan Diego Garcia Lopez, they are the only fighters to have won titles at the Paralympic, World and Grand Prix levels. Naimova is the only fighter to hold them all at the same time.

“I always dreamed of competing in a Grand Prix because it means you are part of an Olympic sport,” Naimova told World Para Taekwondo. “Winning a Grand Prix has always been my dream.”

In a rematch of one of Tokyo 2020’s best fights, Turkiye’s Mahmut Bozteke once again edged out Mongolia’s five-time World Champion Bolor-Erdene Ganbat 10-8 in a thrilling semifinal before besting Brazil’s reigning Paralympic Champion Nathan Torquato in the final.

In a rematch of the World Championship final – the most exciting fight of that tournament – Turkiye’s Ali Can Ozcan was able to flip the script to edge out Israel’s reigning World Champion Asaf Yasur 36-24 in another entertaining -58kg finale.

In a battle of the last two women to win world championships, Thailand’s two-time and reigning World Champion Khwansuda Phuangkitcha showed she still is a force in the division by edging Mongolia’s Enkhtuya Khurelbaatar out by golden point to win the premiere -47kg Grand Prix title.

Brazil’s Silvana Cardoso continues to lead the field in the -57kg category, picking up the Grand Prix title with a comfortable 28-10 win over Turkiye’s Gamze Gurdal. Cardoso hasn’t lost since a semifinal against Denmark’s Paralympic Champion Lisa Gjessing in one of Tokyo 2020’s most memorable matches. Other winners include Turkiye’s reigning World Champion Cavdar, who needed a late flurry to get past Egypt’s Salma Ali 9-8 in a thrilling -52 semifinal; Garcia Lopez, whose 15-4 win over Azerbaijan’s Imamaddin Khalilov was much cleaner than the golden point win he needed at the European Championships last month; and the USA’s Evan Medell, who topped the world’s No. 1 – Croatia’s Ivan Mikulic – in the latest installment of their long-running rivalry.

For those that are counting, that’s silver for Mikulic at the Paralympic Games, World Championships, and now the inaugural Grand Prix, with losses in the final to three separate fighters.

‘Floating on Air’

Not all favourites had such an easy time.

The first to fall was Italy’s World Championship runner-up Antonino Bossolo, who was stunned by Iran’s Saeid Sadeghianpour 15-13 in the -63 kg quarterfinal.

In a tournament to remember, Sadeghianpour nearly topped Brazil’s Paralympic Champion Nathan Torquato in the semifinal, before losing by golden point.

The biggest upset of the tournament was the shocking gold medal won by France’s Djelika Diallo. The young French fighter stunned Great Britain’s European Champion Beth Munro 28-26 in a wild -65kg final that throws the division wide open.

Five different fighters have won -65kg tournaments over this season. Besides Diallo and Munro, these include Denmark’s Gjessing; Turkiye’s reigning World Champion Secil Er; and Cameroon’s African Champion Marie Antoinette Dassi.

“The first people I called were my parents,” Diallo said. “I felt like I was floating on air with the sensation of having done something [that is] hard to believe.”

There were plenty of upsets in the -80kg group, which saw two first-time finalists face off in the final. Iran’s Alireza Bakht won his first international title with a 19-9 win over Mexico’s up-and-coming Luis Najera.

“I still have many things to improve, but today I took a great step in learning,” the 21-year-old Mexican said. “I learned about distance, how to perfectly time a kick, about new competitors and how to face them at future competitions.”

Part of the reason for the all-newcomer final was a surprise loss by Great Britain’s European Champion Joe Lane to Ukraine’s fast-rising Vladyslav Nechai, who escaped Ukraine and is now training in Denmark with Ukrainian National Team Coach Andriy Starkov and the rest of Ukraine’s Para Taekwondo team.

“When Joe Lane won gold [at the European championships] in Manchester, said ‘I want to fight him’,” Nechai said. “I was psychologically ready to fight him. wanted to beat the champ.”

The +65kg group also saw new fighters emerge as elite fighters in the category.

Spain’s Dalia Moreno continues to impress, winning bronze. alongside Serbian newcomer Jelena Rasic.