2009 World Taekwondo Championships
The world’s top players have prepared nearly two years for this week. The World Championships have already officially begun, with competition running from October 14 to October 18 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Canadian dream-team of 16 Taekwondo athletes was qualified nearly three months ago in Kingston Ontario.
| 2009 Canadian World Championship Team | ||
| Male Athletes | ||
| Fin | Nicholas Pereira | |
| Fly | Jocelyn Addison | |
| Bantam | Simon Cox | |
| Feather | Jerome Cabanatan | |
| Light | Maxime Potvin | |
| Welter | Sébastien Michaud | |
| Middle | François Coulombe-Fortier | |
| Heavy | Michael Kitschke | |
| Female Athletes | ||
| Fin | Yvette Yong | |
| Fly | Brigitte Crockford | |
| Bantam | Ivett Gonda | |
| Feather | Shannon Condie | |
| Light | Karine Sergerie | |
| Welter | Sylvie Barker | |
| Middle | Courtney Condie | |
| Heavy | Dasha Peregoudova | |
| Officials | ||
| Head of Team | Oh Jang Yoon | |
| Team Manager | Gérard Lauzière | |
| Head Coach | Woo Yong Jung | |
| Coach | Jamie Dossantos | |
| Coach | Alain Bernier | |
| Coach | Shin Wook Lim | |
| Team Doctor | Dr. Hemen Shukla | |
| Team Doctor | Dr. Mohsen Kazemi | |
Example of how a coach can request a video replay on critical points (click to watch video)
This Championships is notable as being the first using the new WTF sparring rules, which include a smaller ring, three-point headshots, two-point spinning kicks, and a video instant-replay system. Electronic scoring will also be used, which is now standard at international and some national events.
The Korean team has always dominated the World Championships, winning more than double the total number of medals (and eight times the number of gold medals) than the second-place country, Spain. However Korea’s team roster is weaker this year, with several players lacking significant international experience.
The big question is: can another country adapt to the new rules better, and capitalize on Korea’s weakness to edge them out on the medal count? If so, it won’t come easily. For example, the Korean coaching staff is reported to have customized new training methods to perfect each of their players’ face kick techniques.
The Korean men’s team coach Park Jong-man says, “Unlike in the past, there is no gap in skill level between Korean taekwondo athletes and athletes from other places around the world. In order to take a clear lead in a match, we must make good use of the new scoring system. Our athletes are in good condition. We are expecting three gold medals in men’s competitions and three to four golds in the women’s events.”
With this power imbalance and new rules that encourage attacking, we can expect some very exciting matches out of Copenhagen. The good news for Canadians who can’t make the trip is that all matches will be broadcast online courtesy of Dartfish.
»Official World Championship website
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Great article Alex! I love the quote from the Korean team head coach Park. Lofty goals on his part I must say!
Good luck to our great athletes I think this strong team has a very good chance of bringing home some medals for sure.
Yes, I will put myself on the line and make some predictions a la Coach Park:
Men’s team 3 medals
Womens team 4 medals.
GO CANADA GO!
Already saw Korean lose in his 1st match. In another match, the Korean looked weak vs Puerto Rico.
I agree with you there bigbark. That KOR v POR was a bad decision. That head shot they gave Korea was a weak point that would be questionable in a colour belt tournament- it went right up and over the POR player.
hey coach – poor decision or not, it was not the dominating performance we have come to expect from Korea. Were these two the best fighters in their weight categories in Korea? If so, that’s shocking.
Good Job Sebas! Bronze medal is respectable.
GO CANADA GO!
Good job, Yvette Yong (Bronze) and Maxime Potvin (Silver). Way to represent!
Extremely proud of our medallists!
Sebastien Michaud – Bronze (Men’s Welterweight)
Yvette Yong – Bronze (Women’s Finweight)
Maxime Potvin – Silver (Men’s Lightweight)
[...] speculation that the South Korean team may have be weaker, Korea still managed to place first in the medal count (9 total, 5 gold) just ahead of Spain (with [...]