South Korea's taekwondo players are under huge pressure as they know the price of failure will be extreme.
The pressure is on for the South Korean taekwondo team. As the London Olympic games draw closer, the players know there is a lot on the line for them.
GENERAL MANAGER OF TAEKWONDO TEAM KIM SEI-HYEOK SAID: “Taekwondo is our national sport, it originated in Korea, so we are under pressure to get many gold medals. It’s natural for us to win gold medals, we’ll be treated as traitors if we don’t, that’s what our media says.”
After a disappointing Athens Games, where they won two gold medals, the team returned to Beijingto win golds in all of the four categories they were allowed to participate in.
Each country is only allowed to send representatives for maximum four out of the eight categories intaekwondo. The team is training everyday to keep in shape and is focusing on their strengths.
TAEKWONDO PLAYER HWANG KYUNG-SEON SAID: “I have better footwork than my rival competitors, so I have focused on practicing those skills a lot.”
TAEKWONDO PLAYER CHA DONG-MIN SAID: “To beat those tall players, I practiced my timing (of attacking) by moving a lot. My aim is to return with a gold medal round my neck, as is our people’s wish.” Taekwondo, loosely translated as “way of the fist and foot”, enjoyed a surge in popularity after it was exhibited as a demonstration sport at the Seoul Olympics in 1988. The 2012 London Olympics taekwondo competition will be held at the ExCeL arena in London from August 8 to 11.
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