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2026 NCTA National Collegiate and High School Championships to be held in Chapel Hill, NC on April 24-26
2 months
NCTA is pleased to announce that the 2026 National Collegiate and High School Taekwondo Championships will be held on Friday, April 24 through Sunday, April 26 at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at Woollen Gymnasium, hosted by the Carolina Taekwondo Club. This event is planned to be a 10.0 USATKD sanctioned event for the collegiate championship divisions, with those collegiate championship divisions also serving as a qualifier for the USATKD National Championships analogous to the USATKD State Championships.
The tournament will begin with all collegiate and high school poomsae, breaking and demo team competition on Friday, all collegiate and high school championship individual sparring on Saturday, and the 3 v. 3 format NCTA Cup event on Sunday. As in past years, collegiate taekwondo clubs will vie for the chance to become national champions in the Overall (Brown & UT Austin defending champions), Black Belt (MIT & UC Davis defending champions) and Color belt (UT Austin defending champions) divisions. Those participating on Sunday will be competing to win the newly minted traveling NCTA Cup (Northeastern University defending champions).
Said NCTA President Dan Chuang, “NCTA has been consistently setting records for attendance each year for the past several years at our national events, and I expect these championships to be no different. In particular, NCTA now sanctions well over 10 collegiate tournaments per year, so we expect that momentum to carry through to our national championships. I can’t wait to see all of the athletes competing with pride representing their colleges.”
As announced earlier, the 2026 NCTA Team Trials for the FISU America Games will be a separate event held on April 3 in conjunction with the CUTA California State Championships, and should not be confused with the 2026 National Collegiate and High School Championships.
Information will be posted as it becomes available on the NCTA Championships page.
2026 NCTA Team Trials to be held in Fresno, CA on Friday, April 3
2 months
NCTA is pleased to announce that the team trials to represent USA at the 2026 FISU America Games (collegiate Pan American multi-sport Games) will be held on Friday, April 3 in Fresno, CA at the Fresno Convention Center. The 2026 FISU America Games will be held July 20 to August 1, 2026 in Lima, Peru, with taekwondo events taking place July 23-26 (the taekwondo team for USA would likely arrive one to two days earlier and depart on July 27).
The event will be held in conjunction with the California Unified Taekwondo Association (CUTA) state championships. but will have its own separate registration. Said NCTA President Dan Chuang, “The NCTA is grateful to President Yong Choi and CUTA for their gracious support of the collegiate athletes. I am so excited to see these amazing collegiate student athletes vie for the opportunity to represent USA at these unique continental multi-sport Games.”
The divisions being contested at the trials will be:
1) Individual Kyorugi (sparring) (eight male and eight female senior weight classes)
2) Individual Recognized Poomsae (separate male and female)
3) Individual Freestyle Poomsae (separate male and female)
4) Mixed Pair Freestyle Poomsae (one male and one female)
5) Mixed Team Freestyle Poomsae (five athletes, at least two males and at least two females)
The FISU America Games will allow more than one player in each individual discipline to enter. Therefore, NCTA will select two athletes for each individual division to represent the USA.
More information, including selection procedures, will be available soon on the 2026 Team Trials page.
National Collegiate Taekwondo Association Celebrates Historic Performance at 2025 Summer World University Games
7 months
Photo credit: Perfect Imperfection
Rhine-Ruhr, Germany – July 24, 2025 – The National Collegiate Taekwondo Association (NCTA) is proud to announce a groundbreaking performance by the USA National Collegiate Taekwondo Team at the 2025 Summer World University Games in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany. The team achieved its highest-ever medal count, surpassing the previous record of 6 medals set in 2003.
This year marks the 10th Summer World University Games (SWUG) in which Taekwondo has been featured. Taekwondo was first introduced as an optional sport in 2003 in Daegu and became a compulsory event in 2017. The 2025 Games also held significant weight as a G4 status event, contributing valuable ranking points for athletes.
“This team of 22 athletes and 14 staff really came together in a short period of time to achieve this amazing result,” said NCTA President Dan Chuang. “NCTA promotes a mutually supportive and positive dynamic, and the team members really pushed each other each day to have their best performances in the ring through training, ringside cheering and shared purpose. It was truly a team result, and each and every member of the team can be proud of the medals earned.”
Team Leadership and Coaching Staff:
Photo credit: Perfect Imperfection
Our team was guided by an experienced coaching and staff roster, including:
- NCTA President: Dan Chuang
- Head of Team: Rex Hatfield
- Director: Sung Kim
- Head Coach: Joe Van
- Doctor: Sherri Lashomb
The staff was rounded out by Giduk Gun, Joe Harris, Sungwon Kang, Sungjin Kim, David Lee, Sang Jae Lee, Cheyenne Lewis, Philip Vincent Ripepi, Fabricio Rodriguez, and William Young, Jr..
The NCTA is pleased to announce the appointment of our esteemed team captains for the 2025 Summer World University Games:
- Team Captain: Sung Hyun Eric Gun (Rutgers University)
- Team Captain: Hannah Keck (Austin CC)
- Team Captain: Isaiah Young (UNC-Charlotte)
NCTA Athlete Sponsorship
The NCTA is committed to supporting its athletes. This year, the sponsorship program was updated to offer more to those athletes who showed prior success in the 2024 and 2025 competition year based on ranking and podium results. For the 2025 Games, top ranked athletes received full funding, and numerous other athletes who demonstrated success in 2025 G-ranked events were siginificantly sponsored, highlighting our dedication to fostering top collegiate talent.
Poomsae Medals:
Photo credit: UniUSA
The USA team showcased remarkable talent in the Poomsae discipline:
- Kaitlyn Reclusado (Menlo College) and Sung Hyun Eric Gun (Rutgers University) secured the first GOLD medal of the Games for USA Team, winning GOLD in Mixed Pair Poomsae. This also marked the first GOLD medal of the Games for USA.
- Female Team Poomsae – Gahui Kim (Georgia State), Lana Moraleda (UC Berkeley), Kaitlyn Reclusado (Menlo College) earned a BRONZE medal, marking the first medal for USA in Female Team Poomsae at the Summer World University Games.
- Kaitlyn Reclusado (Menlo College) earned a BRONZE in Female Individual Poomsae, which was also the first medal of the Games for USA.
- Sung Hyun Eric Gun (Rutgers University) also achieved a BRONZE in Male Individual Poomsae.
- The USA finished with a national record of 4 medals out of 5 possible Poomsae divisions.
This marks the first women’s team poomsae medal at SWUG. Reflecting on the experience, Team Captain Sung Hyun Eric Gun commented, “It was an honor to represent the USA at the Summer World University Games. The team atmosphere was incredible, and it was so special to see us all come together in a very short period of time and be supportive of each other through all the tough and exciting moments.”
Sparring Medals:
Photo credit: UniUSA
The USA team also delivered a strong performance in the Sparring events:
- Michael Rodriguez (Houston CC) secured a BRONZE medal in -87kg Sparring.
- Youngsuk Ethan Gun (CC Morris) earned a SILVER medal in -54kg Sparring.
- Hannah Keck (Austin CC) won a BRONZE medal in +73kg Sparring.
Youngsuk Ethan Gun, a silver medalist in sparring, added, “SWUG was unlike any other event I’ve been to, and my first time at a multi-sport games. Being able to represent my country and travel as a team, creating bonds with sparring teammates, made the experience truly special.”
Bronze medalist Hannah Keck said, “Representing the United States at SWUG felt very different from other competitions. While there is always an element of pressure to perform at any tournament, the environment this time was incredibly positive and encouraging. When one won, we all did.”
This year’s performance marks a significant milestone for USA Taekwondo. The last individual female sparring medal was in 2011, and the last male individual sparring medal was in 2017. The last time both male and female individual sparring medals were achieved was in 2005. Furthermore, the last male middleweight medal was in 2000. These results represent the best performance ever for USA Collegiate Taekwondo at the Summer World University Games.
Overall Team Standing:
The US team finished an impressive 7th overall in the Taekwondo medal count, placing ahead of Uzbekistan. Korea led the medal count.
Participating Universities:
Athletes from a diverse range of prestigious universities and colleges represented the USA, including:
- Kaitlyn Reclusado – Menlo College
- Sung Hyun Eric Gun – Rutgers University
- Bomin Kim – Duke University
- Anthony Do – University of California, Los Angeles
- Gahui Kim – Georgia State University
- Lana Moraleda – University of California, Berkeley
- Hazel Della – George Mason
- Dahin Song – University of Pennsylvania
- Johnson County Community College
- Montana Miller – Edmonds College
- Jessica Gniedziejko – City College of New York
- Chloe Chua – California State University, Fresno
- Brianne Usserman – George Mason University
- Hannah Keck – Austin Community College
- Young Suk Ethan Gun – County College of Morris
- Erick Chaparro – University of Texas, El Paso
- Cole Noretto – Seattle University
- Justin Fredricks – SUNY Old Westbury
- Noah Shanafelt – Kent State University
- Isaiah Young – University of North Carolina, Charlotte
- Michael C. Rodriguez – Houston Community College
- Brian Choi – Rutgers University
Brianne Usserman, a sparring athlete from George Mason University, concluded, “It was, without a doubt, the best trip I’ve ever been on, and I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything.”
Photo credit: Perfect Imperfection
The NCTA congratulates all the athletes on their exceptional achievements and looks forward to continued success in future international competitions.
Contact:
Catherine Tong, NCTA Secretary General
ncta.sg@gmail.com
2025 Summer World University Games Kicks Off in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany
8 months
July 16, 2025 – Essen, Germany. The 2025 NCTA National Colllegiate Taekwondo Team representing UniUSA kicks off competition tomrrow at the World University Games in Rhine-Ruhr region, Germany on July 17, 2025. 22 athletes and 15 staff will represent the USA at these games over 7 days and 24 medal events. 558 atheltes from over 35 countries are represented at the Taekwondo event, the second largest event of the Games. Best of luck to all USA athletes and staff!
Coaching Application for 2025 Summer World University Games
11 months
The NCTA is now accepting applications for coaches for the 2025 Summer World University Games from July 14-24, 2024 in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany. Applications can be submitted at this form and are due by Friday, April 25 Monday, April 28.
Details of the trip are in the application.
