Park Tae-joon, ranked fifth in the world, withdrew due to Magomedov’s injury in the second round against Gasim Magomedov (26th) in the men’s 58kg taekwondo final at the 2024 Paris Olympics at Grand Palais in Paris, France on the 7th (local time).
Although there were concerns that it would be a difficult game against Magomedov, who has emerged as a dark horse by causing a stir in catching the gold medalist at the last tournament, the variables in the first round changed the game.
With about a minute left in the first round, he hurt his left shin while trying to kick Park Tae-joon. Magomedov collapsed on the left shin and complained of severe pain. The injured part caught by the camera became greatly swollen.
Magomedov, barely standing up after being helped by the medical staff, got back on the field with his limp feet.
However, Magomedov’s legs were in such bad condition that it was difficult to support his body. He showed his fighting spirit to push ahead with the game despite the pain, but it was not enough.
Magomedov, who gave up the first round, did not give up and attacked Park Tae-joon for the rest of the second round.
Rather, he was shaken by Park Tae-joon’s spinning kick. He showed his back losing his balance. Park Tae-joon pushed Magomedov’s waist hard. Magomedov slumped off the line with no energy. It was so hard that his mouthpiece fell out of the big pain.
At the scene, boos poured out against Park Tae-joon. It meant that he should have attacked the opponent, who hurt his leg and turned his back.
However, when Magomedov turned his back and Park Tae-joon attacked, the referee was on the verge of stopping the game. As the game was in progress, the play was strictly fine.
In addition, Park Tae-joon pushed Magomedov out of the line to earn points. When a player goes out of the line, he or she gets a deduction for the so-called “line-out.”
In addition, Magomedov had four points deducted in the second round before being “lined out.” If the line out increased the fifth point, the match could have ended with five points deducted before winning the abstention.
As soon as the umpire finished the game, Park lowered his posture and comforted the fallen Magomedov. Magomedov embraced Park with one arm.
They were even more affectionate at the award ceremony. When we came out to the stadium for the ceremony, Magomedov walked out on Park Tae-joon’s side. With his hands on Park’s shoulders, Magomedov moved his limp legs, while Park Tae-joon walked slowly with his hands in his hands. On the podium, Park Tae-joon supported Magomedov by covering his waist. Park Tae-joon supported Magomedov even when they each wore a medal around their necks.
In the round of 16, Park easily defeated Johandri Granado (12-0, 12-0) of Venezuela (29th). After kicking with his left foot, he immediately turned with the opposite foot to kick, which excited the spectators who visited the Grand Palais with his powerful technique of strengthening the opponent’s head. In the quarterfinals, he beat Siriran Ravel (11th, France) with his home fans’ support, 2-1 (8-5, 3-4, 5-4), and advanced to the semifinals.
The semifinal match was the biggest watershed. Mohammed Khalil Gentub of Tunisia, the silver medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and world No. 1, became a match for Park. However, it was easier than the quarterfinals. He passed the semifinal by winning both the first and second rounds. In the second set, he earned 13 points in attack taekwondo, which earned him the final ticket.
Park Tae-joon, who has been called a “Taegwon genius” since his childhood, wore the 2022 Taegeuk mark when he was a student at Hanseong High School and won the men’s 58kg final at the World Taekwondo Federation (WT) World Grand Prix Challenge 2022 held at Muju Taekwondo Academy in Jeollabuk-do Province that year, beating Yodrak Tanakrit (Thailand) with a round score of 2-1. 토토사이트
The national selection match for the Paris Olympics in February was a stage that proved that Park Tae-joon has grown into a world-class athlete. In order for Park Tae-joon to compete in the Paris Olympics, he had to overcome Jang Joon (Korea Gas Corporation), who is considered the ace of Korean taekwondo. Jang Joon has built a career incomparable to Park Tae-joon, who is still 20 years old, with the gold medal at the 2019 Manchester World Championship, the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics, and the gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year.
Moreover, Park had six losses out of six against Jang. Jang had far more chances to go to Paris.
Park had a head-to-head match with Kyung Hee University coach Chung Eul-jin to beat Jang. He usually plays with his left foot in front of him as a right footer, but puts his right foot in front of him in the starting lineup. Consequently, this adventure hit the bull’s eye. He will make his Olympic debut after beating Jang in his seventh match.
Park Tae-joon, a right-footed player, usually plays with his left foot in front of him, but in the starting match with Jang Jun, he put his right foot in front.
As a suzerain country, Taekwondo has won a total of 12 gold medals, three silver medals and seven bronze medals in the Olympics. However, it has been a long time since news of the gold medal in men’s taekwondo was cut off. With the rapid leveling of power by foreign players with good physical conditions, Korea has lost ground.
Park Tae-joon was listed as Korea’s first gold medalist in this weight class. It is also the first time in 16 years that a Korean male athlete has won a gold medal. For the first time since Son Tae-jin (68 kg class) and Cha Dong-min (80 kg class) at the 2008 Beijing Games, Park Tae-joon topped the podium.