In this tournament, the only place that counted was first. There were no medals, and no second place finishers. It was all or nothing, with the winner getting what could be their one and only shot at the Taekwondo World Championships.

It seemed somehow fitting that these World Championship Team Trials were hosted in Ottawa’s historic Cartier Square Drill Hall, where Canadian Forces have been doing combat training for over 120 years. With only the top competitors for each weight category allowed to participate, the fighting on April 7 was as intense as it gets. To many competitors this event meant far more than the Canadian National Championships because the Worlds is the top Taekwondo event and happens only every two years — and it’s an important step towards making it to the Olympics in 2008.

Fans were not disappointed by the action in Men’s Bantamweight! Early on, Bernard Lorde proved beyond a doubt that he was a serious contender by beating Sean Vrtacic (2007 National Champion) in sudden death overtime.

In the next ring, Ali Ghafour was head-to-head with Yannick Lebreux — one of the most anticipated matches of the day (in a recent Combat Canada poll, both fighters were voted equally to win the division). It came down to sudden death where both players gave solid shots, and Ghafour’s was scored for the win. After this critical loss Yannick forfeit his remaining matches. Ghafour went on to beat Lorde, and then Vrtacic (9-2) making him the undefeated winner and recipient of a ticket to Beijing.

Ghafour says about his performance:

I like to keep my opponents guessing all the time so having both a strong left and right leg allows me to change up my game and keep them guessing. My division had some really excellent and proven players: Yannick — Jr. World Champion and National Team Member, Sean — Jr. World Bronze Medalist, and Bernard — a fellow team mate and rising competitor. I have competed against all of them in my division before, but in Taekwondo anything can happen. In addition to knowing my opponents, it was even more important for me to prepare mentally as well as continuing my physical training. All these factors combined helps me be consistent in my results and feel 100% ready.

My goal for the World Championships (along with Pan Am Games) is to medal. This will be in line with my other goals this year and continue to put me further up in the running for the Olympic Qualifiers and thus Olympic Games.

Yannick’s brother J.F. Lebreux had better luck in lightweight division. J.F. (six-time Senior National Champion) sought retribution for his sudden death loss to Chris Iliesco at the 2007 Nationals which cost him the title — and got it, hands down. A much bigger challenge was Chris Hodgins, who gave J.F. so many injuries during the match that it looked like he’d win by default. But J.F. came back in the last 30 seconds with a series of explosive combinations which took the match, and ultimately the division.

Everyone was wondering if four-time Korean National Champion Joo-han Cha would defeat two-time Canadian National Champion Sébastien Michaud. Cha won every other match that day but Michaud stayed focused and won in a tense sudden death round. Michaud could be a real force at the World Championships; his style is simple, but his timing and distance is superb.

All eyes were on Ivett Gonda’s rematch with Annie-Pier Turcott in Female Flyweight. Gonda (2004 Olympian) was hampered by injury and denied gold by Turcott at the 2007 Canadian Nationals. This time — a month later — Gonda was recovered and back on top of her game, having little trouble beating Turcott 7-4 and making the Canadian team.

The biggest upset of the day was in Middleweight where experienced players Radomir Samardzic and François Coulombe-Fortier both lost in sudden death to Manitoba’s Michael Kitschke. Kitschke will be the only member who hasn’t been on the official Canadian Team before.

The individual Team Members will be training vigorously for the next three weeks until they depart on May 4 for Beijing (coaches and team management have not yet been officially announced). The five-day tournament kicks off May 18.

Canadian Team: 2007 WTF Taekwondo World Championships, Beijing
Female
Fin	Yvette Yong (BC)
Fly	Ivett Gonda (BC)
Bantam	Shannon Condie (ON)
Feather	Melissa Pagnotta (ON)
Light	Karine Sergerie (QC)
Welter	Courtney Condie (ON)
Middle	Dasha Peregoudova (ON)
Heavy	Dominique Bosshart (ON)
Male
Fin	Maikol Pinto (ON)
Fly	Jocelyn Addison (QC)
Bantam	Ali Ghafour (ON)
Feather	Akmal Farah (ON)
Light	J.F. Lebreux (QC)
Welter	Sébastien Michaud (QC)
Middle	Michael Kitschke (MB)
Heavy	Eric Ahn (ON)

» Event Photos
» Full Results – Men
» Full Results – Women
» 2007 WTF World Taekwondo Championships site

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