The great Australian fighting spirit has been showcased the past month at CombatAUS, with Boxing, Judo and Taekwondo all competing internationally. We have witnessed some outstanding performances across the three sports, in particular from the women in #TeamCombat!
In the month that hosts International Women’s Day, we would like to celebrate the incredible success and take a look back at some of the world class performances by these professional women:
Judo
Aoife Coughlan backed up her gold medal performance at the Portugal Grand Prix with bronze at the Tel Aviv Grand Slam in late February. This result saw Aoife become the only Australian judoka to win multiple medals at Grand Slam events. But she wasn’t alone for long as just weeks after, Katharina Haecker took home bronze at the Tbilisi Grand Slam. Katharina was unlucky not to win a medal in Tel Aviv alongside Aoife, securing a massive result when defeating current Olympic and 5 x World Championship on her way to 5th place.
Aoife and Katharina are both currently sitting inside the WR Top 10 in their respective weight categories. Katharina comments, “The success we have seen requires a special form of commitment, will and resilience that is really rare to find. Winning those big medals are an amazing reward for all the hard work we put in – and I can’t imagine anything better than standing on the podium in Paris with a medal around my neck”.
Taekwondo
Juliet Lahood and Stacey Hymer were the standouts at the Belgian Open in March, bagging silver and bronze medals respectively. This was Juliet’s second medal at an international competition in as many weeks after her bronze at the Dutch Open.
For Juliet, “Being apart of #TeamCombat means that I am part of a community of combat athletes and coaches who are dedicated to achieving success. I have a great deal of support that allows me to further my training as well as the opportunity to compete at international events with great athletes who share the same goals as I do.”
The quality of international opponents was high at these events, further showcasing the readiness of Stacey and Juliet to perform on the world stage. Young gun Saffron Tambyrajah won through to the quarterfinal, before falling to a highly ranked, experienced athlete, however her performance against this level of opposition is exciting.
Stacey Hymer comments “It’s incredible to see the results from all Member Sports on the international stage. The team spirit shines through which is lifting our confidence and professionalism!”
Boxing
The Women’s Boxing World Championships in India recently concluded with the team achieving an outstanding collective result. Experienced international campaigners Kaye Scott and Caitlin Parker both secured silver medals, showing they both have what it takes to succeed at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. For Kaye, measuring success purely on medals isn’t what elite sport is all about.
“Success is much more than an international medal or selection into a national team. Success is striving to do your best at training and in competition. Success is being a great role model, a great team member, inspiring others and holding yourself to high standards at all times. Success is supporting your teammates, representing your nation proudly, being resilient and maintaining your core values. Success also means finding balance in your life; pursuing your huge sporting goals but remembering to smile and enjoy the process too!” Kaye said.
Emma Greentree continued her unbeaten international record up until the semi finals, where she lost to top seed and eventual gold medallist from the home nation in a tight contest. This saw Emma take home bronze at her first World Championships, an incredible result considering she only competed in her first two international tournaments in February, where she won gold at both. “It feels like a dream, it’s unreal!” said Emma
“Being a part of #TeamCombat is an amazing feeling! I feel so privileged to belong to this community and proud to represent it across all levels from local to international.”
These three women were the highlights of Australia’s most successful results at a boxing World Championships, supported by some equally impressive performances from young boxers who began their international careers less than two months ago. Monique Suraci, Marissa Williamson, Tina Rahimi, Tiana Echegaray and Danielle Scanlon all dominated their opening bouts before falling to tough, highly ranked opponents.
The collective power of #TeamCombat is something these women are proud to be a part of. Caitlin Parker says ”It feels incredible to be a part of such a strong Australian Combat team, it feels like we are lifting each other up in our daily training environments and at competitions”.
Aoife Coughlan adds “It’s incredible to see so many impressive performances from our female combat athletes. Combat sports are traditionally male dominated so to be seeing such strong performances on a world stage and to be a part of a group of amazing female athletes in this space makes me feel very proud. I hope that the performances of all of our athletes encourages the younger generation of female athletes to pursue whatever sport they are passionate in even if it’s outside of the box.”
“I have loved seeing how well combat athletes have been doing on the world stage. These results are amazing to see and only the beginning. Since coming under the umbrella of CombatAUS it has been great to be able to engage with and support the athletes across all of our Member Sports. It truly does feel like we are one entity working towards a common goal of the overall success of Olympic Combat Sports in Australia. As #TeamCombat we continue to go from strength to strength and I feel as though something special is coming our way” Aoife continues.
The remaining World Championships across Boxing, Judo and Taekwondo are being held in the coming months:
- Judo World Championships in Doha, Qatar (7-13 May)
- Taekwondo World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan (29 May – 6 June)
- Boxing Men’s World Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan (1-14 May)
After the recent success at the Women’s Boxing World Championships, we’re keen to see what #TeamCombat can produce at these events.
With less than 18 months to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, we are gearing up to achieve great results at the pinnacle of world sport!
