South Korea’s Ha Ji-ung won a silver medal in the men’s 59-kilogram division at the 2026 World Taekwondo Junior Championships.
Ha was defeated 0-2 (7-9, 2-14) by Mexico’s Guillermo Manuel Cortes Rabastida in the semifinal on Wednesday at the Martial Arts Sports Complex in Tashkent.
Earlier, Ha advanced with a comenack 2-1 victory (4-10, 9-5, 20-13) over Turkey’s Adam Hasnaoui. He ultimately fell short against Rabastida, a two-time defending champion at the world junior level, to settle for silver.
In the men’s 78-kilogram division, South Korea’s Jang Jun-won took bronze after a 0-2 (6-7, 0-1) semifinal loss to the United States’ Joshua Alayde.
Separately, Cho Jung-won, president of World Taekwondo, met with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev at the Kuksaroy Presidential Palace in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, where he was awarded the country’s highest Order of Friendship.
Mirziyoyev praised Cho’s contributions to the development of taekwondo in Uzbekistan in presenting the honor.
World Taekwondo and Uzbekistan also discussed expanding cooperation, including increased education programs for athletes and referees and the regular hosting of international competitions, reaffirming their commitment to continued exchange and development through the sport.
(This article was produced with the assistance of AI. — Ed.)
khnews@heraldcorp.com
