Hamish Barton claims gold medal in first international taekwondo tournament
After stumbling across the sport six years ago, taekwondo champion Hamish Barton can’t fathom life without it.
- Aaron Cleland leads epic transformation at Blacktown Masters Swimming Club
- Tru Hagens captures four gold medals at Australian Gymnastics Championships
Six years ago, Hamish Barton decided to have a go at taekwondo after seeing a flyer on the way to swimming lessons.
Now he couldn’t imagine his life without it.
The 12-year-old from Blacktown has just returned from claiming a gold medal in his first international tournament.
Hamish travelled to the Gold Coast in June for the 2019 Australian Open where he blew away all expectations to take out the 12-14 year-old, 53-57kg division.
“I was excited and a little bit nervous heading into the tournament as it was my first at the international level,” Hamish said.
“I trained very hard for months to get prepared so I was hoping that I would do OK but I wasn’t expecting to win my division.
“It felt really good to win and was a big relief at the end of the final as I had an excellent opponent.”
Hamish’s success on the Gold Coast followed a stellar performance at the Australian National Titles earlier in the year where he narrowly missed out on a position in the cadet world championship team after finishing with a silver medal against much more experienced opposition.
“I am in a division with boys that can be up to 18 months older than me,” Hamish said.
“I have to the end of 2020 in this same division.”
Hamish is hoping his genuine love of the sport will help him carry his momentum through to the national championships in September before competing in more international events next year.
“I love the fitness that it gives me, the resilience that it teaches me, the skills that I am learning and also that the sport is based on respect,” he said.
“Next year I would like to travel overseas to Asia or Europe to compete. I am aiming to one day win an Olympic gold medal.”
Hamish is this week’s Blacktown Advocate Junior Sports Star nominee for the 2019 Local Sports Stars competition.
To nominate: localsportsstars.com.au
Deep dive: Stars to watch at Aus Interschool Surfing Titles
More than 2000 of the country’s best young surfers will compete in the inaugural Australian Interschools Surfing Championships on the Gold Coast. We reveal the must-watch stars who will make history here.
Revealed: Players you need to watch at National Netball Championships
Future Diamonds will shine on the court at the National Netball Championships. Find out which players you should be keeping an eye on during the week-long tournament.