Taekwondo Not Without Controversy in Beijing

It was sad enough that NBC did not cover the Taekwondo at the Olympics, and that the Lopez family did not sweep the gold, but what is worse is the unsportsmanlike actions of Cuban Angel Matos and his coach Leudis Gonzalez. Matos took more than the allowed minute for injuries and was disqualified in his bronze medal match. He pushed a judge and kicked the referee in the face, and then spit on the floor before stalking out. Both were given a lifetime ban from all World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) championships, subject to confirmation by the International Olympic Committee. More on this story can be found at the BBC website.

What the sport should be shouting about is the fairness of the competition and the fine representation from so many countries—this is what Taekwondo is all about. Look below for the list of medals from various countries and the athletes participating.

The Lopez Tamily

The Lopez family representing the United States, Steven, Mark, and Diana, hailing from Sugarland, Tex. were competing for gold. Steven having previously won two gold medals was hoping for a third. He placed for a silver medal. Mark and Diana, world champions, placed for bronze. Although, not gold, it was honor to bring home medals. Three siblings haven’t competed in the same Olympic Games since 1904. Older brother, Jean, was the U.S. Olympic team’s coach in Beijing.

Medal Winners

























Women’s Fly (-49kg)
Gold Jingyu Wu China China
Silver Buttre Puedpong Thailand Thailand
Bronze Dailia Conreras Rivero Venezuela Venezuela
Bronze Daynellis Montejo Cuba Cuba

























Women’s Feather (49-57kg)
Gold Sujeong Lim South Korea South Korea
Silver Azize Tanrikulu Turkey Turkey
Bronze Diana Lopez USA United States
Bronze Martina Zubcic Croatia Croatia

























Women’s Welter (57-67kg)
Gold Kyungseon Hwang South Korea South Korea
Silver Karine Sergerie Canada Canada
Bronze Gwladys Patience Epangue France France
Bronze Sandra Saric Croatia Croatia

























Women’s Heavy (67+kg)
Gold Maria del Rosario Espinoza Mexico Mexico
Silver Nina Solheim Norway Norway
Bronze Natalia Falavigna Brazil Brazil
Bronze Sarah Stevenson United Kingdom United Kingdom

























Men’s Fly (-58kg)
Gold Guillermo Perez Mexico Mexico
Silver Yulis Gabriel Mercedes Dominican Republic Dominican Republic
Bronze Mu-Yen Chu Chinese Taipei Chinese Taipei
Bronze Rohullah Nikpai Afghanistan Afghanistan

























Men’s Feather (58-68 kg)
Gold Taejin Son South Korea South Korea
Silver Mark Lopez USA United States
Bronze Yu-Chi Sung Chinese Taipei Chinese Taipei
Bronze Servet Tazegul Turkey Turkey

























Men’s Welter (68-80 kg)
Gold Hadi Saei Iran Iran
Silver Mauro Sarmiento Italy Italy
Bronze Steven Lopez USA United States
Bronze Guo Zhu China China

























Men’s Heavy (80+kg)
Gold Dongmin Cha South Korea South Korea
Silver Alexandros Nikolaidis Greece Greece
Bronze Arman Chilmanov Kazakhstan Kazakhstan
Bronze Chika Yagazie Chukwumerije Nigeria Nigeria

Medals by Country

South Korea received four gold medals, which is expected as Taekwondo is the definitive Korean martial art. The United States placed second with medals in silver and bronze; but no gold was received. Mexico received two gold medals and China one gold and one bronze. See below for more results.


























































































































































































































Taekwondo

Rank


Country

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Total

1
South Korea
South Korea

4

0



0

4

2
USA
United States

0

1

2

3

3t
Mexico
Mexico

2

0

0

2

3t
China
China

1

0

1

2

3t
Turkey
Turkey

0

1

1

2

3t
Chinese Taipei
Chinese Taipei

0

0

2

2

t
Croatia
Croatia

0

0

2

2

8t
Iran
Iran

1

0

0

1

8t
Canada
Canada

0

1

0

1

8t
Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic

0

1

0

1

8t
Greece
Greece

0

1

0

1

8t
Italy
Italy

0

1

0

1

8t
Norway
Norway

0

1

0

1

8t
Thailand
Thailand

0

1

0

1

8t
Afghanistan
Afghanistan

0

0

1

1

8t
Brazil
Brazil

0

0

1

1

8t
United Kingdom
United Kingdom

0

0

1

1

8t
Cuba
Cuba

0

0

1

1

8t
France
France

0

0

1

1

8t
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan

0

0

1

1

8t
Nigeria
Nigeria

0

0

1

1

8t
Venezuela
Venezuela

0

0

1

1