Cork fighters land major prizes at Taekwondo World Championships 

CORK clubs flew the flag for Ireland at the 20th Choi Hong Hwa ITF Taekwondo World Championships in Amsterdam recently.

An incredible 60 Irish fighters qualified and remarkably nearly half this number hailed from Cork.

Aghabullogue, Bandon, Belgooly, Blackrock, Cork City Marina, Crosshaven, Farranree, Kinsale, Mahon, Mallow, Midleton, Rathpeacon, and UCC were represented with 17 world medals secured: 12 bronze, three silver, and two gold.

Two world champions were crowned from Cork, Paul Manning and James Dwyer.

Manning, chief instructor of Blackrock Taekwondo Club, became the adult light-weight world champion in Canada, 2012, and has made the podium in every single world championship he’s entered since 2010, winning bronze in Korea 2010, gold in Canada 2012, bronze in Italy 2014, bronze in Argentina 2018, and gold in Netherlands 2022 to become the senior welter-weight sparring world champion.

Dwyer, chief instructor of Midelton Taekwondo Club, first became world champion in 2010, winning gold in the adult middle-weight sparring in Korea, and since then he’s won every world championship he’s entered, becoming the senior heavy-weight world champion in Argentina 2018, and successfully defending his title this year to remain the senior heavy-weight world Champion for Netherlands 2022.

In the adult male sparring, Alex McCarthy from Farranree TKD fought his way to the semi-finals of the micro-weight division, winning by knock-out in his quarter-final and winning bronze for Ireland.

In the junior boys divisions, Cian O’Connor from Precision TKD in Rathpeacon won bronze in the welter-weight section, coming away with a torn quad muscle from his semi-final.

Callam Hill from Precision TKD in Aghabullogue made it another bronze for Ireland, this time in the junior heavy-weight section, only losing to his fellow squad-mate David O Donoghue from Blackrock TKD, who went on to win silver.

The junior boys hyper weight division was last, with another fighter from Blackrock, another David — this time David Lyons — and another silver won for their country, just missing out to a tough opponent from Argentina.

Several Cork fighters made it on to the Irish teams — where the top seven competitors from each country face off — with David Lyons, David O’Donoghue, and Callam Hill on the junior boys, along with Callum Lees from Redking TKD, and Killian Beirne from Midleton.

For the adult men’s team, Dwyer from Midleton, David Lovell from Kinsale, and Manning and Josh Byrne from Blackrock, were all selected.

In the adult ladies’ team, Amy Sullivan from Blackrock TKD helped her country to bronze.

The junior girls secured bronze in three out of the four divisions, with Megan Leahy from Farranree, Alliyah Salim Said from Redking TKD, and Emily O’Polo from Midleton involved, with Alliyah also winning bronze in heavy-weight sparring, and Megan winning silver in the hyper-weight division.

Rihanna Morey from Precision TKD in Rathpeacon was the final junior girl to medal, winning bronze in the middle-weight section.