Courtesy USA Taekwondo

(Aug. 27, 2016) — The USA Taekwondo Cadet National Team rallied for a strong final day at the 2nd WTF World Cadet Taekwondo Championships in Korea, winning a gold and silver medal to cap a three-medal performance at the four-day event. The team also finished third overall in the female competition. The championships drew a total of 465 athletes, age 12-14, from 59 countries. A KP&P protector and scoring system (PSS), and an instant video replay were adopted at the event, while an electronic head gear with a visor were used for the safety of the young participants.

On Tuesday’s final day of action, Melanie Diaz (Stevenson Ranch, Calif.), 14, needed only two rounds to win the gold medal in the female +59kg final as she defeated Jordan’s Aysheh Alsedah, 16-4, with a 12-point gap victory at the end of the second round. The bronze medals went to Egypt’s Nada Elashkar and Russia’s Kristina Adebaio. Diaz outscored her four opponents by a total of 57-16. She opened with a 23-0 win over India’s Sakshi Bhati, and then posted a 10-5 victory over Iran’s Zahra Nasir Ahmadi. She advanced to the final by edging Adebaio, 8-7.

Kiana Chai Chong (Bowie, Md./Black Belt Academy), 14, also reached the podium on the final day, winning a silver medal in the female -37kg class. Chong convincingly advanced to the final with three impressive wins; a 13-1 defeat of Spain’s Alba Palmer Soler, a 13-7 victory over Korea’s Mi-reu Kang, and a 14-2 win over Thailand’s Supara Jarussangkulkij. Facing Iran’s Mobina Nejad Katesari in the final, Chong took a 4-3 lead in the second round with a three-point turning kick, but Katesari tied it at 4-4 as the round came to a close. The only point of the third round was awarded to Katesari after Chong lost her balance while attacking and fell to the mat for an automatic deduction, giving Katesari a 5-4 victory. Jarussangkulkij and Germany’s Supharada Kisskalt claimed the bronze medals in the division.

The opening day of competition saw Ashleigh Ogan (Carson, Calif./Salim’s Taekwondo Center), 13, win a bronze medal in the female -33kg division. Ogan won three matches to reach the semifinal round. She recorded a 24-2 win over India’s Arpita Pawar, a 12-4 win over Korea’s Chae-Won Kyung, and a 12-4 win over Japan’s Miku Serizawa to reach the medal rounds. In the semifinals, Ogan lost an 8-5 decision to eventual silver medalist Chutikan Jongkolrattanawattana. Iran’s Mahla Momenzadeh won the gold medal while Great Britain’s Jordyn Smith took home the other bronze medal.

The three medals earned the United States team 37 points in the female competition, good for third place behind defending champion Iran (83) and Russia (48). Korea (36) was fourth followed by Turkey (33). Team USA has now earned six medals at the first two Cadet World Championships, after winning one gold and two bronze at the inaugural 2014 event in Baku, Azerbaijan.