Paris 2024: The United States and Brazil dominated the last Taekwondo Olympic qualifier

In Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, the Pan-American Taekwondo Olympic Qualifying Championship was held and the last 16 places were defined for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The United States and Brazil were the big winners.

Faith Dillon (-57 kg), Jonathan Healy (+80 kg) and Kristina Teachout (-67 kg) were the representatives of the United States who won the place for the Olympic Games, while Brazil won the ticket to Paris with María Clara Pacheco (-57 kg), Edival Potosí (-68 kg) and Henrique Marques Rodrigues (-80 kg).

For their part, the local public celebrated at the Volleyball Pavilion of the Olympic Center the classifications of Madelyn Rodríguez (-67 kilos) and Bernardo Pie (-67 kilos), who is the younger brother of Olympic medalist Luisito Pie, bronze in Rio de Janeiro 2016.

Cuba also won two places for Rafael Alba Castillo (+80 kg), bronze in Tokyo 2020 and double world champion, and Arlettys Acosta (+67 g); while Chile was the other country that qualified two taekwondists in the Olympic Games: Joaquín Churchill (-80 kg) and Fernanda Aguirre (+67 kg).

The 16 places were completed by Argentinian Lucas Guzmán (-58 kg), Uruguayan María Sara Grippoli (-49 kg), Venezuelan Yohandri Granado (-58 kg) and Canadian Josipa Kafadar (-49 kg).

It should be noted that the places obtained in the Dominican Republic Olympic Qualifying are not nominal, so the National Olympic Committees (CONs) will be responsible for defining which of their athletes will be the representative in Paris 2024.

Taekwondo at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be held at the Grand Palais from August 7 to 10, in total there will be 128 athletes and only four places remain to be defined as a criterion of universality in four categories.

There will be eight categories in Paris 2024: men will compete in 58 kg, 68 kg, 80 kg and more than 80 kg, while women will compete in 49 kg, 57 kg, 67 kg and more than 67 kg. The universal odds that remain to be defined are one in each of the heaviest categories in the men’s tournament and in each of the lightest categories in the women’s competition.

After being an exhibition sport in Seoul 1988 and Barcelona 1992, taekwondo has been part of the Olympic program since Sydney 2000 and South Korea tops the historic medal table with 12 gold, three silver and seven bronze medals.