Chinese taekwondo athletes win the mixed gender team match during the 2019 World Taekwondo World Cup Team Championships in Wuxi on Aug 25. [Photo/worldtaekwondo.org]
Chinese taekwondo athletes secured their place in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as they won the mixed gender team match during the 2019 World Taekwondo World Cup Team Championships in the city of Wuxi on Aug 25.
With an early withdrawal by the US team due to injury, the day offered a golden opportunity for the remaining seven countries: China, Cote D'ivoire, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Turkey and Russia.
Host China conquered the competition with fierce attacks in all high-scoring matches.
In the semi-final against Turkey, China won convincingly with a score of 83:48, before facing Iran in the finals, where they secured the top spot on the winner's podium with an impressive 50:26 result.
Four star athletes -- Pan Gao, Hao Tang, Linglong Chen and Jie Song -- made up the winning team for the mixed team gender champions.
Four Chinese star athletes enjoy the victory after fierce competitions in the final. [Photo/worldtaekwondo.org]
The team competition is a newly developed event in taekwondo. Pundits say that although the mixed gender team match will be staged with an exhibition competition status in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, it is very likely to be formally admitted as a full event in the future.
During the competition, the women's team also claimed the title for the third time.
World Taekwondo Federation President Choue Chung-won said they had seen fantastic action, packed into four days in Wuxi.
"All athletes, showcased the very best of our sport and demonstrated that taekwondo is more than a sport; it is a philosophy which teaches discipline and respect."
