In the first day of the Olympic Qualifer, British Columbia’s Ivett Gonda earns her spot in the Beijing Olympics.
After defeating both the U.K. and Israel by a whopping 7-point spread, she lost a tight match against Cuba. After re-focusing with coach Shin Wook Lim she faced Brigutte Yague, the current World Champion from Spain, who had beat Gonda in their last encounter at the 2007 World Championships. Taking an early lead on Yague, Gonda received kyong-go (warning penalty) for holding, leaving her with a very narrow 1-0 advantage. In the end her preparation paid-off with a 2-0 win, securing her the last of three Olympic spots.
This is a major success for Canada, as only two Taekwondo players have represented the country at the Olympics: Dominique Bosshart who won Bronze in 2000, and Ivett Gonda — the same Ivett Gonda — in 2004.
Considering that she’s a far stronger player today than in 2004 and that she already knows the Olympic experience, Gonda will be a serious contender next year in Beijing.
Karine Sergerie and Jocelyn Addison compete on Saturday, and Sebastién Michaud wraps it up on Sunday.
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