Asp Taekwondo wins gold at ATQ State Opens

A Bundaberg taekwondo team has challenged some of Queensland’s best martial artists, bringing home a haul of medals. Read the full details on the rising stars who won gold.

Two years of sweat, tears and hard work has finally paid off for juniors at a Bundaberg East taekwondo club.

Seven Bundaberg martial artists took home the gold after competing at the ATQ State Open event on Sunday in Brisbane.

Asp taekwondo instructor Mitchell Archer says his students put in hours of work for the competition.

“All these kids are training six days a week and doing three hard sparring sessions a week,” Mr Archer said.

“Every minute they have, they come and spend it at the hall.”

Which is no surprise, given that seven of their 16 team members won gold in their age categories.

The winners included red belt Olivia Ward for the 15-17 year category, red belt Thenuri Weerasinghe for 12-14 years, blue belt Dayzi Jones for 12-14 years, blue belt Eli Reed for 12-14 years, blue belt Bodhi Harris for 8-9 years and yellow belt Kai Little for 8-9 years.

Another winner, Rubi Little, took out an impressive two gold medals for the blue belt 10-11 year category and black belt 12-14 year category.

Rubi said facing a big challenge was what she enjoyed most at the tournament.

“I had a big challenge against a red belt and then she went very, very hard and I like that because I like to have challenges,” Rubi said.

The 10-year-old says she isn’t slowing down on training anytime soon, hoping to add more medals to her growing collection.

“I’m going to keep training harder so that I can go into more tournaments and walk out with more medals because I’ve got a lot in my bedroom.”

Mitchell said it “feels great” to see his students’ hard work paying off.

“It’s a reflection of their dedication and commitment to the sport,” Mitchell said.

“I’m happy for them that they get to see hard work leads to results.”

Growing up training at the club himself under a master teacher, Archer said the sport was an ideal way for childrens from all backgrounds to build confidence and emotional resilience.

“You see kids come in and they always have beautiful personalities and beautiful souls underneath, but confidence is always an issue,” he said.

“Martial arts gives them that space to actually express themself, and even though we’re about discipline, we’re not about crushing their spirit.

“Bringing people into the best version of themselves is the most satisfying part.”

Asp student Thenuri Weerasinghe will face the 2021 national championships in Brisbane in two weeks time, postponed from last year before the entire team go back to state selections.