Great Britain produced a historic performance at the 2026 World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships in Chuncheon, Korea, returning from the biggest edition of the Championships in history with three medals and a record-breaking result for British Taekwondo.
A 34-strong Great Britain team representing 19 British Taekwondo clubs competed across five days of action at the Songam Sports Town Air Dome, taking on the world’s leading Poomsae athletes across individual, pair and team competition.
The Championships themselves broke participation records, with 1,417 athletes from 83 countries, alongside athletes competing under the World Taekwondo flag and the Taekwondo Refugee Team, making Chuncheon 2026 the largest World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships ever held.
Great Britain ultimately finished 12th in the medals table, earning a gold, silver and bronze medal at the same World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships for the first time to marking the most successful performance in British history.
The first British medal of the Championships arrived on Day Two, as Ali Pourtaheri of PremierKi produced a remarkable performance to become World Champion in the O65 Individual Male division.
The reigning European Champion progressed through four demanding rounds before overcoming Denmark’s Jorn Andersen in the final, securing Great Britain’s first World Poomsae gold medal in 15 years.
Ali’s achievement was particularly significant given his extensive experience at the Championships. The Chuncheon event marked his 12th World Poomsae Championships, having first competed at the event in Cairo in 2009, and his latest success added World gold to the bronze he won in 2010 and silver secured in Hong Kong in 2024.
Reflecting on the achievement afterwards, Ali said: “It’s an achievement that I’m so proud of, and one that I have achieved thanks to Masters and Grandmasters who have believed in me and have helped me during the whole process.”
The victory also made Ali only the second British Poomsae athlete to win an individual World Championship gold medal, following Grandmaster Tong Wan Shin’s success in 2011.
Great Britain’s second medal came just one day later, as Master Simon Negus delivered an outstanding performance in the U60 Individual Male division to claim World Championship silver.
Simon progressed through four rounds on Day Three, overcoming Germany’s Christian Senft, Australia’s Dennis Park and Portugal’s Pedro Tomas before defeating the Philippines’ June Ninobla to reach the final.
There, he faced Korea’s Min Sang Kim, with the home athlete taking both rounds to secure the gold medal, leaving Simon with a superb World Championship silver.
Simon’s achievement, coming just a day after Ali’s gold, established a new benchmark for Great Britain at the World Poomsae Championships. At that point, with two days of competition still remaining, the team had already surpassed its previous best medal performance, having never won a gold and silver at the same event.
Great Britain’s third medal came on Day Four, when the O60 Female Team of Gini Brown of Bluewave, Pina Petrillo of Choson Taekwondo and Jenny Furness of PremierKi secured World Championship bronze.
The trio entered the competition at the semi-final stage and faced Australia for a place in the final. Although Australia progressed, Great Britain secured the bronze medal and added another podium finish to an already historic Championships.
The medal was another significant achievement for the British O60 Poomsae athletes, following the silver won by the O60 Male Team at the 2024 World Championships in Hong Kong.
Away from the three medal-winning performances, the British team produced a series of strong displays across all five days of competition.
Day One saw Ajay Singh Rawat of LTA Lions reach the quarter-finals of the U50 Individual Male division, progressing through two rounds before narrowly missing out against USA’s Minki Seong. Cuba Wilson of NTC Nottingham also progressed to the Round of 32 in the U17 Individual Female division, while Fearne Corkish, Wenqi Li, Wayne Nicklin and the U30 Female Team all represented Great Britain on the opening day.
On Day Two, Zaw Torley of Arumchan Korea produced another impressive run, reaching the quarter-finals of the U30 Individual Male division. The U14 Pair of Alexandra Stefaniak and Augustine Kwon, along with the U50 and U60 Male Teams, also gained valuable experience against strong international opposition.
Day Three brought Simon’s silver, while several other British athletes and teams continued to compete against world-class opposition. Eddie Sobiecki and Louis Exton competed in the U14 and U17 Individual Male categories respectively, while Jenny Furness reached the quarter-finals of the O66 Individual Female division and the U50 Pair of Wenqi Li and Alasdair Cox also took to the mats.
Day Four saw the O60 Female Team secure bronze, while the U14 Male Team of Eddie Sobiecki, Augustine Kwon and Christian Casaclang produced an excellent performance against Brazil before exiting against Chinese Taipei in the quarter-finals. The U30 Male Team of Nino Ontoy, Zaw Torley and Oluwatimilehin Akinrele also competed on the fourth day.
The final day brought further strong performances. The U30 Pair of*Olivia McGeoch and Nino Ontoy progressed through two rounds, defeating Reunion and Brazil before narrowly losing to Türkiye in the Round of 16. The U17 Male Team of Louis Exton, Gabriel Casaclang and Peter Sellwood also progressed through their opening contest against India before exiting against Canada.
James Barrett progressed through the opening round of the U40 Individual Male competition, while Pina Petrillo, the U17 Female Team and the O60 Male Team also competed on the final day. The O60 Male Team of Ali Pourtaheri, Mike Pejic and Wayne Nicklin entered at the quarter-final stage, narrowly losing to Mexico after splitting the two performances.
For Great Britain, the achievements in Chuncheon represent a significant milestone for Poomsae. Three World Championship medals: Ali Pourtaheri’s gold, Simon Negus’ silver and the O60 Female Team’s bronze, saw the team finish 12th in the overall medals table.
Beyond the medals, the Championships provided an opportunity for a new generation of British athletes to experience the highest level of international Poomsae, while established competitors continued to demonstrate the depth of experience and quality within the British Taekwondo community.
Every athlete who represented Great Britain in Chuncheon can be proud of their contribution. Across five days, they competed with commitment, professionalism and pride, representing their clubs, families and country on the biggest stage in Poomsae.
British Taekwondo is incredibly proud of the entire team and everyone who contributed to this historic campaign.
Leave A Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.