Can UCLU Taekwondo spar their way to victory?

UCLU will take on KCLSU in the Taekwondo ring tomorrow evening at 7pm in the sixth London Varsity event

KCLSU london varsity sport taekwondo UCLU

The Taekwondo Varsity tomorrow evening between UCLU and KCLSU will be a fresh experience for all – there will only be one ring in the middle of the Somers Town sports hall, and all eyes will be on the two competitors fighting for glory.

Fighters will be facing competition they’ve never taken on before, as some weight and belt categories have been merged together for the purpose of pairing up fighters. It will be a challenge for both sides to adjust their fighting style according to their opponent, but UCLU Taekwondo reckons this will add even more excitement to the fights.

The Taekwondo Varsity promises to be another 50/50 competition. At the BSTF (British Student Taekwondo Federation) Nationals this past weekend, 15 UCLU Taekwondo fighters competed and won 3 gold, 4 silver and 4 bronze medals. King’s won 2 golds, 4 silvers and 6 bronze medals.

With the results from the Student Nationals so close, don’t miss out on such a rare occasion to experience high standards of taekwondo. Get to know the Varsity squad and cheer them on from outside the ring!

Jungyeon Kim (President), Black belt 1st dan

Practising since: Age 10

Favourite thing about it: Sparring!

Competition history:

  • Student Nationals 2012 (-62kg): Bronze
  • Imperial College opens 2012 (-62kg): Bronze
  • Student Nationals 2013 (-62kg): Silver
  • Imperial College opens (-62kg): Bronze
  • Nottingham Open Championships (-62kg): Bronze

Most likely to get in a fight if: Someone tries to tickle me

Dairui Dai, Yellow belt

Practising since: Started taekwondo back in 1st year

Favourite thing about taekwondo: Spinning hook kicks

Competition history: Imperial Open (2013), Student Nationals (2013)

Most likely to get into a fight if: In the queue for ULU

Isabel Koh, Black belt 1st Dan

Been practising for: 7 years

Favourite thing about TKD: Falling flat on my back when doing the simplest kick and bursting into a laughing fit

Most likely to get into a fight if: Food is on the line

Aydan Gasimova, 5th Kup (blue tag)

Been practising for: 2 1/2 years

Favourite thing about it: Binge eating after a weigh-in

Competition history: Gold at Nationals 2013, Gold at Imperial Open 2013, Bronze at Nottingham Open 2014

Most likely to get into a fight if: Someone calls me Aids one more time…

Henry Watkins, Black belt 2nd dan

Practising for: 9 years

Favourite thing: Sparring (aka hitting people in the face, repeatedly, preferably in an flashy way)

Competition history: I have fought at the Student Nationals twice before with mixed success and also twice at the Imperial Open and the Nottingham Open. Before coming to university I trained in ITF (International Taekwondo Federation) style Taekwondo and went to a few ITF competitions.

Sophia Verma, 9th kup

Been practising for: Only for the few months that I’ve been at UCL but it feels like ages!

Favourite thing about it: Kicking people in the head

Competition history: First camp was the Student Nationals!

Most likely to get in a fight if: There’s chocolate or ice-cream

Rico Hodges-Smikle, Yellow belt

Been practising for: 1 year

Favourite thing about it: Fighting and not getting in trouble for it

Competition history: Imperial Open (1 Silver 1 Gold), BSTF Nationals (1 Gold), Nottingham Open (1 Gold)

I would get in a fight if: Justin Bieber started it, because let’s be honest who wouldn’t kick the shit out of him?

Luis Sellmeyer, Red belt 1st kup

Previous competitions: German National events & Imperial Open

Most likely to get into a fight if: Darth Vader attacks me!

Jens Bruin Odengaard, Black belt 1st dan

Competition history: Imperial Open 2013 and Nottingham 2014

Buy your tickets now – more than half are gone already and they’re going fast!