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2012 World University Taekwondo Championships Sparring Summary
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Day 3
Team USA opened up in spectacular fashion on the first day of sparring competition with thrilling fights
from finweights Kelsey Kitagawa (University of Hawai’i-Manoa) and Johnny Nguyen (Mesa Community
College) and featherweights Stepfon Westbrook (California State University of Northride) and Emilia
Morrow (Miami Dade College).
Both Kitagawa and Morrow fought with great passion and drive, but unfortunately they came up short
in their first rounds against Turkey and Chinese Taipei, respectively. Kitagawa scored the initial point and
kept her lead throughout the majority of the match. Turkey received both her points through warnings.
Kitagawa tied it up, but unfortunately fell one point shy of moving on to the next round. Morrow drew
a tough first round against eventual silver medalist from Chinese Taipei. She gave an extremely strong
effort, staying aggressive and throwing some hard cuts, but also fell short and did not advance to the
next round.
Westbrook had an uphill battle but lost to eventual silver medalist from Korea. The round was evenly
matched, with Korea slightly ahead near the close of the third round. Westbrook tied the match in the
final second, pushing the fight into overtime. After some exciting exchanges, Korea scored first. Despite
his loss, Westbrook’s reflection of his match is positive, “I gained a lot of confidence. Not only did I fight
on a world level, but I fought against a finalist from Korea.”
Nguyen emerged victorious in his first match against Japan. He took an early lead with a beautiful axe
kick and finished the round with a final result of 9-5. Next, Nguyen had an amazing comeback against
Thailand in the quarterfinals. Near the end of the second round, he was down 0-5. Within the last 30
seconds, Nguyen threw an impressive jump spinning hook to bring the score to 4-5. Nguyen increased
his lead with a solid back kick and eventually won the match with a final score of 10-8. He advanced
to the semifinals against Indonesia, ensuring the US our first medal of the tournament. Even though
Nguyen fought aggressively, Indonesia proved to be a formidable opponent, and he finished the evening
with a bronze medal. “It’s an honor to have been a part of this experience“ said Nguyen. “Having the
opportunity to wear the stars and stripes at medal ceremonies made the sacrifice, hard work, and
dedication all worth it.”
Day 4
Team USA had another exciting day with matches from welterweights Phillip Yun (University of the
Pacific) and Alex Cinque (Fordham University) and flyweights Haley Kong (Stanford University) and Tyler
Sawyer (Santa Clara University).
Cinque drew Australia first round. Despite taking an early lead, Australia fought back to tie up the score.
It was a riveting match with many exchanges, but Australia scored in the final seconds of the match,
preventing Cinque from advancing.
Kong drew eventual bronze medalist from Korea first round. She managed the match with great
composure the entire way through. No points were scored until the final round when Korea landed a
headshot in the last 30 seconds. Kong gave a strong effort but was unable to catch back up.
Sawyer drew a tough first round against a Chinese Taipei competitor who will be fighting at the
upcoming Olympic Games. Sawyer took an early lead, but Taipei evened the score in the second round.
The match stayed close with Sawyer showing great defense and nearly pulled away victorious but fell
short with a final score of 5-7.
Yun started the day off against Spain, controlling the match the entire way through. He scored
with various techniques, including a couple strong punches which have barely been scored at this
competition. He won 12-2 to advance to the quarterfinals against Turkey. Yun gave a valiant effort
against Turkey keeping the score close, but fell slightly short of advancing to the next round.
Day 5
Team USA had another great day with exhilarating matches from lightweights Nicole Palma (University
of Miami, Lake Worth, FL) and Thomas Rahimi (North Lake Community College) and heavyweights
Danielle Harrison (Johnson and Wales University) and Stephen Lambdin (Oklahoma City Community
College).
Palma drew Korea in the first round. She had some great shots and gave her best, but Korea’s aggressive
tactics and strong defense prevented Palma from advancing to the next round.
Harrison drew Brazil in the first round. She had some amazing moments including a powerful cover
punch that wowed the crowd. Despite her determination, Brazil won the round.
Rahimi drew former World Champion from Iran in the first round. He started off strong with a quick cut
kick in the first few seconds of the match. Down a couple points in the third round, Rahimi came back
to push the match into overtime. In sudden death, Rahimi threw a strong cover punch which forced the
judges to convene, but it was not awarded. Rahimi sparred hard but eventually, Iran scored.
Lambdin started the day off against China, whom he fell to last year at the Universiade in Shenzhen,
China. The match stayed close and eventually went into overtime. Lambdin scored within the first five
seconds of sudden death, advancing him to the quarterfinal rounds against Russia. Russia had an early
lead with a headshot but Lambdin kept his composure looking for the right opportunity. “Even though
I was down early, if I stuck to our gameplay, I would be fine. I just needed to stay calm and wait for my
shots,” said Lambdin. Towards the end of the third round, Lamdbin tied the score with a fierce axe kick,
once again, pushing the match into overtime. There were some nail-biting exchanges, but Lambdin
pulled through with a solid body shot to advance him to the semi-finals against eventual gold medalist
Iran. Similarly to Russia, Iran started off strong and took an early lead with a headshot. Despite another
beautiful axe kick Lambdin scored towards the end of the third, Iran came away victorious with a final
score of 4-3. Reflecting on his matches, Lambdin noted, “I need to take more chances. Most of the
heavyweights couldn’t match my speed. I need to spend less time in my own head and just go for it.”
Lambdin earned a bronze medal and is the second person to medal on the US Team.
Day 6
The final day of sparring competition was another exciting day with matches from bantamweight Aziza
Chambers (Wright State University) and middleweight Kellie Fairbanks (Hillsdale Community College).
Chambers drew Korea and eventual gold medalist in the first match. She maintained an early lead in the
first round. She continued to fight aggressively, throwing some amazing headshots but unfortunately did
not land. Despite a strong effort by Chambers, Korea moved onto the next round.
Fairbanks drew Germany in the first round. She kept the score close but in the very beginning of the
third round, tragedy struck as Fairbanks completed tore her ACL as she landed an axe kick. Despite the
immense amount of pain, she continued to fight until Coach Brian Singer pulled her from the match to
protect her knee. She was rushed to the hospital immediately after. Fairbanks is in great spirits despite
the injury. She cannot wait to return to practice and get back into competition.
This concludes Team USA’s trip to the 12th World University Taekwondo Championships. Team USA
brings back two bronzes, new experiences, and a plethora of knowledge to bring forward into the
future.
2012 World University Taekwondo Championships Poomsae Summary
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The USA Poomsae Team opened the competition with a strong showing these first two days. Rene Chen
(Women’s Individual, Rhode Island School of Design, Medford, MA) and Long Nguyen (San Jose State
University, San Jose, CA) both advanced to the final round. The level of competition was extremely high
with many former medalists amongst the group.
Competing in the semifinal round, Chen performed pal jung and koryo to beat out many top nations to
advance. In the finals, she competed in keumgang and taebaek and showed much strength and stability
throughout both forms. All performances were very solid, and she finished the day in 7 th place overall.
This is the best result for a US female individual poomsae competitor at a world collegiate event, besting
her performance last year when she placed 8th at the Summer World University Games in Shenzhen,
China.
Nguyen, also in the semifinal round, performed koryo and keumgang to advance to the final round
where he performed taebaek and pyongwon. This is his first year representing the US in the Men’s
Individual category and showed great tenacity and rhythm throughout his performances. He finished the
day with an impressive 8th overall position.
Day 2 of competition consisted of three events. Starting off the day was the Mixed Pairs Division
represented by Hazel Cruz (Santa Clara University, Hayward, CA) and Long Nguyen. They opened with
keumgang and taebaek in the semi-final round. This is the first time the pair has competed together at
Collegiate Worlds and their performance was very solid and showed great power and synchronization
throughout both forms. They were shy of the final round by only 0.18, placing 9 th overall.
Women’s Team, comprised of Rene Chen, Carissa Fu (Princeton University, New York, NY), and Miyako
Yerick (Columbia University, Annandale, VA), competed second. Competing with keumgang and taebaek
in the finals, they represented the US well, despite slight wobbles in keumgang. They came back with a
strong taebaek to finish the day 7th overall. The women had a very tough draw competing with a group
of multiple former world medalists.
The final event of Day 2 was the Men’s Team Division, comprised of Alvin Jong (University of California,
Davis, San Jose, CA) Long Nguyen, and Lance Supnet (Evergreen Valley College, San Jose, CA). Performing
taebaek and pyongwon in the finals, they had the best result of all events across the 2 days: they
narrowly missed the medal stand by 0.16, finishing 5th overall.
All poomsae competitors showed great determination and focus. They did an amazing job against an
experienced international crowd and are working successfully to improve the international reputation of
poomsae in the United States. The caliber of competition has increased tremendously over the past few
years. US Poomsae Team Head Coach Huy Nguyen said, “With each competition, we are continuing to
learn from the top athletes and coaches in this discipline. There is definitely room for growth, however,
we continue to hang close with the top teams and increase our level with each passing year. We had a
great year, and it’ll be even better next year.”
US National Collegiate Taekwondo Team Selected at 37th National Collegiate Taekwondo Championships
0The National Collegiate Taekwondo Association (NCTA) held the 37th National Collegiate Taekwondo Championships on April 7 and 8, 2012 in Cambridge, MA at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, hosted by tournament director Dan Chuang, and presided over by NCTA president Russell Ahn. An event-record 601 athletes participated from over 100 different colleges and universities. At the conclusion of the tournament, 23 athletes were selected to represent the United States at the World University Taekwondo Championships in Pocheon, Korea on May 25-30, 2012.
Seven athletes were selected to represent the United States in the poomsae divisions. Long Nguyen (San Jose State University) won the men's individual division, and Rene Chen (Rhode Island School of Design) won the women's individual division. Long Nguyen and Hazel Cruz (Santa Clara University) won the mixed pair division. Nguyen, Alvin Jong (University of California, Davis), and Lance Supnet (Evergreen Valley College) earned the men's team spot, and Chen, Carissa Fu (Princeton University) and Miyako Yerrick (Columbia University) earned the women's team spot. Long Nguyen, Chen, Jong and Fu are all returning members to the collegiate poomsae team from the 2011 World University Games. Fu is a three time collegiate poomsae team member and earned a bronze medal at the 2010 World University Taekwondo Championships in women's team poomsae.
The sparring divisions were contested in a single elimination bracket, with double elimination beginning at the semifinal rounds. In the men's divisions, the winners were Johnny Nguyen (54 kg, Mesa Community College), Tyler Sawyer (58 kg, Santa Clara University), Stepfon Westbrook (63 kg, California State University of Northridge), Jensen Ishida (68 kg, University of Hawaii-Manoa), Thomas Rahimi (74 kg, North Lake Community College), Phillip Yun (80 kg, University of the Pacific), Phil Drake (87 kg, East Carolina University), and Stephen Lambdin (over 87 kg, Oklahoma City Community College). Sawyer, Westbrook, Ishida, Yun and Lambdin are returning team members from 2011. Johnny Nguyen and Lambdin are both four time team members, with Nguyen earning a bronze medal at the 2006 World University Taekwondo Championships and Lambdin earning a bronze medal at the 2008 World University Taekwondo Championships.
In the women's sparring divisions, this year's team members are Kelsey Kitagawa (46 kg, University of Hawaii-Manoa), Haley Kong (49 kg, Stanford University), Aziza Chambers (53 kg, Wright State University), Emilia Morrow (57 kg, Miami Dade College), Nicole Palma (62 kg, University of Miami), Alexandra Cinque (67 kg, Fordham University), Kelly Fairbanks (73 kg, Hillsdale Community College), and Danielle Harrison (over 73 kg, Johnson and Wales University). Chambers and Harrison are both returning team members. Chambers is a 3-time team member and earned a bronze medal at the 2011 World University Games.
The male athlete of the year was Phillip Yun. Yun won the 80 kg division for the second year in a row and reached the quarterfinals at last year's World University Games. The female athlete of the year was Rene Chen. Chen has qualified 5 poomsae team spots during the past 2 years and reached the finals in the female individual poomsae division at last year's World University Games. The freshman athlete of the year was Haley Kong, who won the female flyweight division and the female 2nd Dan lightweight forms division during her first year of collegiate eligibility.
The coach of the year was Kent Kitagawa of Stanford University, who coached both Kong and Sawyer to national team spots in the sparring divisions. The referees of the year were Leslie Cheung (male) and Hyowon Choe (female).
2012 NCTA Championships Announcements
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in Championships
Thank you for your support of the National Collegiate Taekwondo Championships! I am pleased to announce that at latest count we have a record setting 600 competitors attending these championships. Congratulations to everyone for making this an historic event!
Some important announcements regarding this weekend:
No Athlete Registration Necessary Before Weigh-ins
Athletes who require weigh-ins may proceed directly to weigh-ins without stopping at registration first! Athletes must bring a photo ID with them to weigh-ins. If they weigh in at their target weight, they will receive a weigh-in card that they can take to registration, where they must again show their photo ID to to receive their credential and verify their paperwork. If athletes are missing any paperwork (citizenship, student eligibility), they should be sure to use the “troubleshooting” line.
Temporary Access to Competition Floor on Saturday Morning for Black Belt Athletes
For black belts competitors who wish to watch the competition on Saturday morning before black belt registration starts, they may pick up a temporary credential at colored belt registration on Friday from 4-10 pm, or Saturday between 8-9 am.
Event Parking
There will be event parking available on Saturday and Sunday at the MIT West Garage, which is directly across from the Johnson Athletic Center entrance at 120 Vassar St, Cambridge, MA 02139. Parking at the MIT West Garage will cost $5 per day. Also, there is metered parking along Vassar St. and Massachusetts Ave near the entrance to the Johnson Athletic Center. This metered parking will be free on Saturday evening and all day on Sunday.
For the Friday night events at the Cambridge Hyatt, there is paid parking available at the Cambridge Hyatt. There is metered and free parking along Vassar St. in the vicinity immediately around the hotel.
Qualifying for USAT Senior Nationals in Poomsae
According to the USAT selection procedures, all colored belt poomsae competitors will automatically qualify for USAT nationals in their corresponding division. For black belt competitors, the top 4 finishers in each of the Poomsae Team Trials divisions only will qualify for USAT Nationals.
Color Belt Sparring Division Reminders
Just a reminder that color belt sparring will be scored using the judges controllers only, thus color belt competitors do not require Daedo electronic foot protectors. White, yellow green and blue belt competitors will compete under USAT junior safety rules, and are not required to wear Taekwondo gloves. Red belts will compete under full adult rules and must wear Taekwondo gloves. Taekwondo gloves will be available for purchase on-site, along with other martial arts equipment and tournament T-shirts, though our tournament sponsor, Rhingo Martial Arts Supply.
Best regards,
Dan Chuang
Korean University Taekwondo Federation Team Visit
0I am pleased to let you know that the Korean University Taekwondo Federation Team will visit the California Bay Area as part of our NCTA exchange program. For your information, 5 out of 13 athletes will be competing in 2012 WUTC in Pocheon, Korea. We will have several technical clinics and friendly matches with the Korean team during their stay in the Bay Area. The Korean team will also visit Stanford, UCB and UC Davis to do technical training as well as conduct friendly matches during their stay.
They will further participate in the 43rd UC Open Taekwondo Championship as competitors. There will be a 5 on 5 tag team competition between the US and Korean team and individual matches as well. Therefore, I would like to invite our NCTA National team after we select our team this weekend.
For your information, I would like to invite either Korean or Spain University team over to the East Coast next year as part of our exchange program effort. Throughout the exchange program, we will not only further our relationship with other countries’ Taekwondo teams but also elevate our US Team’s competition experience.
I am looking forward to seeing you all soon in Boston.
Russell Anh
