Team
USA Team for the 2019 Summer World University Games Selected
The National Collegiate Taekwondo Association completed its team selection by holding a 2019 Summer World University Games team trials for its poomsae athletes at the 2019 NCTA Championships on April 20 at the University of Texas at Austin. One 3-person male female team and 3-person male team only were selected. Each team was asked to compete with one freestyle and one recognized poomsae in the final round.
In the female poomsae division, the winners were Adalis “AJ” Munoz (University of Texas, Arlington), Christy Quintanilla (Johns Hopkins University), and Titania Thao (Gustavus Adolphus College). The male poomsae athletes selected were Kody Han (Foothill College), Edward Jeong (University of Bridgeport), and Sean Wallace (Santa Clara University).
These 6 athletes will join the 12 athletes selected at the sparring team trials held on March 9 at the Ft. Worth Convention Center and journey to Naples, Italy this July to compete at the Games. The female sparring athletes include Lizette Salas (-49kg, California State University, Northridge), Logan Weber (-53kg, Johnson County Community College), Starla Santana (-57kg, Miami Dade Community College), Amanda Bluford (-62kg, De Vry University), Cheyenne Lewis (-67kg, University of California, Berkeley), and Makayla Gorka (-73kg, University of Central Oklahoma).
The male sparring athletes include Alejandro Bravo (-58kg, Miami Dade Community College), George El-Chemali (-63kg, University of Southern California), Charles Buset (-68kg, American Military University), Matthew Klein (-74kg, University of Dayton), Connor Wilson (-80kg, University of California, Los Angeles) and Abdul Rahman (-87kg, College of Southern Maryland).
Said incoming NCTA president Dan Chuang, “Congratulations to these athletes who have earned the right to represent their country on the largest collegiate stage in the world. I look forward to seeing this incredibly talented and hard working group of athletes give their best in July.”
2019 NCTA Sparring Team Trials Held in Ft. Worth, SWUG Sparring Team Selected
7 years
Congratulations to the sparring team trials winners who competed Saturday, March 9 at the Ft. Worth Convention Center in Ft. Worth Texas! This team will represent Team USA at the Summer World University Games in Naples, Italy this July 2019. Special thanks to the Texas State Taekwondo Association for supporting this event.
Female Fly – Lizette Salas (California State University, Northridge)
Male Fly – Alejandro Bravo (Miami Dade Community College)
Female Bantam – Logan Weber (Johnson County Community College)
Male Bantam – George El-Chemali (University of Southern California)
Female Feather – Starla Santana (Miami Dade Community College)
Male Feather – Charles Buset (American Military University)
Female Light – Amanda Bluford (De Vry University)
Male Light – Matthew Klein (University of Dayton)
Female Welter – Cheyenne Lewis (University of California, Berkeley)
Male Welter – Connor Wilson (University of California, Los Angeles)
Female Middle – Makayla Gorka (University of Central Oklahoma)
Male Middle – Abdul Rahman (College of Southern Maryland)
Date of 2019 Summer World University Games Sparring Team Trials Announced
8 years
As mentioned earlier, the NCTA will hold a team trials event (open to those meeting collegiate and age eligibility requirements) that will be separate from the National Collegiate Taekwondo Championships (to be held April 19-21, 2019 at U. of Texas, Austin). The purpose of these trials are to choose the sparring team members to represent USA at the 2019 Summer World University Games in Naples, Italy. The poomsae team trials, due to the smaller size of the event, will be held concurrent with the NCTA Championships in April.
The date of the sparring team trials will be Saturday, March 9, 2019 in Ft. Worth, TX. The trials will be held in the same venue as the Texas State USAT National Qualifier in Fort Worth, TX. Please plan your spring competition schedule accordingly!
As a reminder only flyweight through middleweight divisions will be contested at the trials, and only those aged 18-25 on Dec. 31, 2019 will be eligible.
Updates to 2019 Summer World University Games Team Selection
8 years
Several changes to athlete eligibility for the 2019 Summer World University Games have been implemented this year by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). These changes will impact our USA team selection process for the Games. The changes instituted by FISU are as follows:
1) Only athletes aged 18-25 (athlete’s age on Dec. 31, 2019) are eligible to compete in the 2019 Summer World University Games.
2) No fin (-54kg male, -46kg female) or heavy (+87kg male, +73kg female) sparring divisions will be contested at the 2019 Summer World University Games due to event housing constraints, leaving only 12 weight categories that will be contested at the Games.
3) Only 6 poomsae athletes from each country are allowed to compete at the 2019 Summer Summer World University Games due to housing constraints.
The NCTA wishes to be inclusive of all collegiate athletes. Therefore, in 2019, the NCTA will hold a team trials event (open to those meeting collegiate and age eligibility) that will be separate from the National Collegiate Taekwondo Championships (to be held April 19-21 at U. of Texas, Austin).
Holding a separate team trials and NCTA National Championships will allow the Championships to be more inclusive in terms of age (18+), citizenship (international students allowed), and sparring weight classes (inclusive of all 16 weight divisions).
The 2019 Summer World University Games team trials will only include divisions that will be contested at the Summer World University Games. Adjustments to the poomsae athlete selection process to meet the 6 athlete quota are being considered and will be announced as soon as possible.
It is the NCTA’s intention that both the Team Trials and Championships events will be USAT sanctioned and USAT ranking point-bearing events.
The date and location of the 2019 Collegiate Team Trials are being determined and will be announced as soon as possible.
UPDATE (1/3/2019): The age range has been corrected from 19-25 to 18-25 based on the latest information from FISU.
NCTA Fields Team at Inaugural World University Taekwondo Festival
8 years
Muju, South Korea – (Nov. 4-8, 2018) The National Collegiate Taekwondo Association (NCTA) sent at team of 17 athletes to the Taekwondowon (Taekwondo Park) to compete at the 1st World University Taekwondo Festival (WUTF). Hundreds of athletes from multiple countries including Korea, Japan, China, Malaysia, Mongolia, Ghana and USA gathered to compete in both poomsae and sparring. In addition to the competition, activities promoting cultural exchange were held, including team building, hiking, and joint workouts.
Organizing the trip was NCTA President Russell Ahn and Deputy Secretary General Sophia Chung. The team director was Chang Rok Shon, and the coaches were Jacky Baik, Alex Haksung Kim and Claire Kim. The team doctor was Sherri Lashomb.
Said President Ahn, “The [WUTF] was proposed from WT to FISU in 2011 when World University Taekwondo Championship was no longer available due to the fact that Taekwondo became one of Summer Universiade Compulsory Sports in 2009 Izmir, Turkey, and was formally endorsed by FISU in 2013. World Taekwondo and the Taekwondo Promotional Foundation subsequently organized the pilot event at the Muju Taekwondowon on November 4 – 8, 2018. The festival was a great success, featuring training programs, cultural activities, and academic seminars, and has great potential for future development. With hundreds of collegiate athletes from eight countries, it was a great melting pot for University Taekwondo. I am grateful for our staff, coaches, and athletes who not only actively engaged with various programs but also competed well for USA.”
In the poomsae competition, Alex Lee (Stanford U.) earned a silver medal in Men’s Individual Poomsae, and the female team of Nina Anwar (MIT), Rachel Connick (MIT), and Renee Zhao (MIT) earned a bronze medal in the the female Team Poomsae division. Also representing USA in individual poomsae was Kevin Chen (UC Irvine), Jean Chow (Columbia U.), Frank Fang (MIT), Anwar and Zhao.
In sparring competition athletes competed in Olympic weight classes. On the women’s side, Rose Popma (U. Michigan) earned gold in -67kg, Amanda West (U. Michigan) earned gold in +67kg, Rachel Connick (MIT) earned a silver in -57kg, and Catherine Zhao (Columbia U.) earned silver in +67kg. Also representing in -57kg was Katherine Velguth (U. Michigan). The women’s sparring team of Connick, Velguth and West earned a gold medal in the women’s team sparring division.
In men’s sparring, Caleb Head (Anne Arundel CC) earned a silver in -80kg sparring, Benjamin Aguon (Tarrant County CC) and Justin Shon (UC Davis) earned bronze medals in -58kg sparring, and Franz Darquea (Brigham Young U.) and Nathan Putney (Norlake College) earned bronze medals in -80kg sparring. Also representing in -68kg was Vincent Meng (U. of Dayton). The team of Head, Meng and Shon earned a gold medal in the men’s team sparring division.
