August 4, 2017

World Champion Bianca Walkden gave GB Taekwondo a golden start to the World Taekwondo Grand Prix in Moscow.

The Liverpool heavyweight showed no sign of a hangover from her second successive world title victory by dominating the opposition at +67kg.

Walkden dropped only 14 points in her four fights rounded off with a 14-0 final success over Bich-Na Kim from South Korea.

It was Queen B’s second Grand Prix triumph after success in Azerbaijan last year and a sixth GP medal.

Teammates Lauren Williams and Mahama Cho suffered quarter-final exits at -67kg and +80kg respectively.

Heavyweight Cho, a World Championship medallist earlier this summer, lost 15-13 to experienced Croatian, Vedran Golec.

Lauren Williams, the current European and Double Junior World Champion, exited in rare fashion. After two encouraging performances to get her campaign underway, the Newport teenager faced South Korea’s Hyeri Oh.

Williams was always in the contest but evetually fell foul of the mat referee and was disqualied for amassing too many penalty red cards.

*London’s Copper Box Arena is hosting the World Taekwondo Grand Prix from October 20-22. Tickets are now on sale via http://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/taekwondo

Results:

Bianca Walkden (Liverpool)

+67kg

Round one: BYE

Round two: beat Lorena Brandl (GER) 13-7

Quarter-final: beat Aleksandra Kowalczuk (POL) 6-1

Semi-final: beat Da-Bin Lee (KOR) 21-6

Final: beat Bich-Na Kim (KOR) 14-0

Lauren Williams (Newport)

-67kg

Round one: beat Katia Calvar Martinez (ESP) 23-12

Round two: beat Nigora Tursunkulova (UZB) 13-8

Quarter-final: Lost to Hyeri Oh (KOR) 28-22 Disqualification due to 10 red cards

Mahama Cho (Stockwell, London)

+80kg

Round one: BYE

Round two: beat Jonathan Healy (USA) 13-3

QF: lost to Vedran Golec (Croatia) 15-13

Saturday, August 5:

Male:

-58kg: Max Cater (Southampton)

-80kg: Damon Sansum (Elgin)

Sunday, August 9:

Male:

-68kg: Peter Longobardi-Radford (Rye), Christian McNeish (Plaistow, London).

Female:

-57kg: Rachelle Booth (Wigan)