Taekwondo Seo Geon-woo Fails to Secure Bronze in Men's 80kg Category [Paris Olympics]

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Seo Geon-woo (20, Korea National Sport University) of the South Korean Taekwondo national team suffered a defeat in the men's 80kg semifinal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

On the 9th (local time) at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, Seo lost the men's 80kg bronze medal match to Eddy Hrn?i? (Denmark) with a round score of 0-2 (2-15, 8-11). According to the World Taekwondo Federation (WT) sparring rankings compiled until June, just before the Olympics, Seo was ranked 4th while Hrn?i? was 27th.

Thus, Seo Geon-woo, the first from South Korea to compete in this weight class at the Olympics, ended his first challenge regretfully without a medal.

Previously, Seo defeated Joaqu?n Turrizal (Chile) in the round of 16 and Enriki Marques Fern?ndez (Brazil) in the quarterfinals, but lost to Mehran Barahordari of Iran in the semifinals with a round score of 1-2 (4-2, 9-13, 8-12).

With Seo Geon-woo failing to secure the bronze medal, South Korea's two-day medal streak in Taekwondo came to a halt. Earlier, on the 7th, Park Tae-jun (Kyung Hee University) won gold in the men's 58kg category, and on the 8th, Kim Yoo-jin (Ulsan Metropolitan City Sports Council) took gold in the women's 57kg category.

Seo Geon-woo, regarded as a 'rising star' in South Korea's heavyweight Taekwondo division, earned his ticket to Paris by winning the WT World Grand Prix Final last December.