Taekwondo athletes selected for European Universities Combat Sports Championships

British Taekwondo is delighted to celebrate the athletes and coaches selected to represent their universities at the 2026 European Universities Combat Sports Championships, taking place in Tirana, Albania, from 8–16 September 2026.

Organised by the Albanian University Sports Federation, the Championships will bring together university athletes from across Europe to compete in Judo, Karate, Taekwondo and Kickboxing, with around 1,500 participants representing 400 universities.

The Taekwondo competition will take place at Feti Borova Olympic Park, with the Poomsae competition on Wednesday 9 September, followed by Kyorugi on 10–11 September.

The significance of this year’s event is further strengthened by the Taekwondo competition receiving G1 ranking status from World Taekwondo. This provides athletes with the opportunity to compete on a major international stage while also earning valuable World Taekwondo Ranking points.

This event marks the first time that British Taekwondo has worked alongside BUCS to support the selection and entry of the Taekwondo team for the European Universities Combat Sports Championships.

The collaboration has brought together athletes from universities across the UK, supported by coaches and instructors from the British Taekwondo community. The partnership represents an exciting development for university Taekwondo and creates further opportunities to connect university competition with the wider performance pathway.

Following on from this continental competition, British Taekwondo looks forward to continuing to work with BUCS on progressing the BUCS Taekwondo Championships, as well as international university sport events and teams in the future.

The selected Taekwondo delegation reflects the strength and diversity of university Taekwondo across the country, with athletes representing universities from England, Scotland and Wales.

British Taekwondo squad for the 2026 European Universities Combat Sports Championships

Recognised Poomsae – Female

Jemma Indra Naraine – Cardiff University
Leanne Suzanna Yeung – University College London
Yu Wai Fung – University of Aberdeen
Hannah Culver – University of East London
Eleanor Anne Warrington – University of Oxford

Recognised Poomsae – Male

Mohammed Salim Ibrahim – King’s College London
Darrel Masaire – University of East London

Freestyle Poomsae – Female

Ariela Veizaj – King’s College London

Freestyle Poomsae – Male

Darrel Masaire – University of East London

Kyorugi – Female

Emily Clark – Edge Hill University – 49kg
Maisie Hockey – St Mary’s University Twickenham – 49kg
Isabelle Hockey – St Mary’s University Twickenham – 53kg
Rhianna Sheetal Patel – University of Surrey – 53kg
Vera Tian Hui Tong – University of Edinburgh – 53kg
Nafisa Farida Qureshi – University of Reading – 57kg
Elizabeth Grace Hignett – Edge Hill University – 62kg
Ayomide Aishat Kazeem – Kingston University – 62kg
Niamh Sopuruchi McKeown – University of Warwick – 62kg
Hilal Ozturk – University of Southampton – 67kg
Katherine Jane Hambleton – University of Nottingham – 73kg
Lauren Gallacher – University of Stirling – 73kg
Kyra Zorzy – University of Oxford – 73kg

Kyorugi – Male

Syed Waasif Husaini – Middlesex University – 54kg
Zack Riley Thomas Sarsoza – University of Salford – 54kg
Jose Daniel Carvalho – Manchester Metropolitan University – 54kg
Muhammad Ayaan Zakir Mahmood – University of Surrey – 58kg
Finn Labong – University of Salford – 58kg
Matteo Califano – University of Sheffield – 58kg
Ahmad Al-Baidhani – Kingston University – 63kg
Dominic Ming Kit Ly – University of Warwick – 63kg
Atanas Metodiev Vardev – University of Surrey – 63kg
Kado Joshua Bateman – University of Leeds – 63kg
Arigaran Chandramohan – Imperial College London – 74kg
Rahul Amavasee – Kingston University – 74kg
Kacper Ploszaj Gwiazdowski – London South Bank University – 74kg
Theoharys Stavropoulos – University of Hertfordshire – 80kg
Sohrab Alipour – St Mary’s University Twickenham – 80kg
Kyriakos Timotheou – Northumbria University – 87kg
Jordan Osarenren Joel – King’s College London – 87kg+

The team will be supported by a coaching team of Jack Durcan, Shayanne Sarsoza, Kuzey Akses, Daniel Flesher and Paula Smyth.

Reaching this stage is a reflection of the dedication, commitment and countless hours of training each athlete has invested in their Taekwondo journey, and we look forward to seeing them represent their universities and British Taekwondo on the international stage.

We wish all of our athletes, coaches and instructors the very best for the Championships in Tirana and look forward to following their progress later this month.