Day Two of the European Taekwondo Under-21 Championships saw two more British athletes competing in Pristina, Kosovo, as Fabio Carvalho and Thomas Bailey took to the mats.
Both athletes were competing in the -54kg competition on Friday, with Fabio falling at the Round of 32, while Thomas overcame two opponents in the early rounds, before agonisingly missing out in the quarter-finals.
Thomas started the day with Spanish opposition in the Round of 32, with Angel Aguilo Heredia standing in his way as action got underway in Kosovo.
The pair were evenly matched throughout their first bout, with both managing to rebuff the other’s advances throughout the two-minute duel.
Neither athlete had managed to get on the scoreboard with ten seconds remaining in the initial contest, before Thomas earned the winning point by virtue of a Gamjeom to his opponent, who fell to the floor following a well-timed block by the Brit.
With the momentum now on his side, Thomas came out with a fiercer predatory instinct in the second fight, and kept the pressure on his opponent right from the outset.
A two-point lead quickly became four, and then seven, as he demonstrated the full range of his abilities on the mat. Angel was unable to keep up with his intensity, with a 9-0 scoreline evidence of his domination as he advanced to the next round.
Aljaz Miklavcic of Slovenia stood in Thomas’ way in the Round of 16, and once again it was a cagey affair between the pair, with the first 70 seconds of the fight remaining pointless, before the pair traded attacks to see the scores tied at 2-2.
Thomas continued to keep his composure, as he had done all day in Kosovo, and secured a crucial three-point score to edge himself into a 5-2 lead, which he held onto for the remainder of the fight thanks to some shrewd defensive play to keep his opponent at arm’s length.
The second bout continued in a similarly tight manner, with Aljaz holding a 3-1 advantage at the minute mark, before Thomas levelled matters with another stealthy attack.
With the scores locked and time ticking away, the Black Widow Taekwondo athlete looked to have got the decisive score to seal his passage through to the quarter-finals, with an expertly timed headshot giving him a three point advantage with ten seconds left on the clock.
Dodging and weaving away from the inevitable onslaught that followed, it looked as if the 18-year-old had done enough to get over the line, only for the final throw of the dice from the Slovenian making decisive contact, and clutching victory from the jaws of defeat. 7-6.
It would be easy to feel sorry for yourself after such a dramatic ending, but Thomas regathered himself after the interval to once again take advantage in the deciding battle, with a 6-1 lead established after 90 seconds.
Once again, the Slovenian threw everything he had at the Brit to try and reduce the advantage, but having learned from the error of his ways, Thomas picked his shots with precision in the final seconds to maintain his lead.
History looked like it could have repeated itself when Aljaz reduced the arrears to a single point, but two shuddering blows to the body made it 12-7 on the buzzer, with a place in the last eight secured.
Andreas Lepape of France was next to stand in Thomas’ way in the quarter-finals, and right from the off the Briton found himself up against it, having been left trailing 4-1 after 30 seconds.
With video evidence seeing both players successfully land more points within the last ten seconds, it looked as if things had fully turned around as a barrage of blows from Thomas saw him take a two-point lead in the blink of an eye.
Try as he might to keep the advantage, an incredible spinning from the Frenchman caught our player off guard, with an 11-10 victory secured in the most dramatic of circumstances.
Into the second round, and once again Andreas took the initiative, leading 6-3. Thomas levelled matters with an exquisite headshot with less than ten seconds on the clock, meaning once again all was to play for with the buzzer ready to sound.
Pinned against the side of the ring, Thomas attempted a back kick to save his competition, only to fall to the ground to give his opponent the lead once again, which ultimately proved to be fatal in his 7-6 defeat.
Fabio also faced a Spaniard in the Round of 32, as he took on Jairo Agenjo Trigos after receiving a bye in the previous round.
After weighing each other up for the first 30 seconds, the bout sprung into life with both athletes trading scoring shots, with the Spaniard holding on to a 9-6 advantage at the midway mark.
Another two decisive blows saw that lead extended to seven points as the first round drew to a close, with Fabio heading back to his corner after suffering a 14-7 loss.
The Kixstar Dragon star is a determined competitor, and that fighting spirit was shown as the action restarted, with his quick feet and fierce technique penetrating his opponent’s defences to take an early 5-3 lead.
A video replay decision soon saw the scores level, before two quickfire body shots saw the tie turned on its head, with Fabio trailing by four with a minute left to play.
Despite giving his all to try to continue his journey in the competition, the 16-year-old was unable to find the scoring shots needed to overcome his opponent, with an 18-8 scoreline sealing his fate.
Both athletes gave their all across the day in Kosovo, and as we head into the weekend, we look forward to seeing more of our British athletes competing to earn continental medals to end the year.
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