Kawall Ramkiran cops gold at 10th Caribbean Taekwondo C'ships in Barbados

Kawall Ramkiran cops gold at 10th Caribbean Taekwondo C’ships in Barbados

Jan 27, 2011 Sports

Bacchus takes silver & Van-Rossum bronze

A three-member team selected by the Guyana Taekwondo Association (GTA) to attend the 10th Caribbean Taekwondo Championships held at the Sir Garfied Sobers Sports Complex in the land of Flying Fish, Barbados recorded a 100% medal haul.
The GTA is overjoyed with the successes of debutant Kawall Ramkiran who copped gold, Farhaad Bacchus silver and the youngest fighter on the team Orlando Van-Rossum who won bronze at the event held on Saturday last and attracted fighters from across the Region including Jamaica, Guadeloupe, Suriname, Antigua & Barbuda and Trinidad and Tobago.
Ramkiran, in his first try at this level was extremely impressive in his preparation for this championship and despite having a height disadvantage; he showed great courage and determination to go after his opponent aggressively in spite of the odds.
Ramkiran dominated his semifinal round clash against the home team (Barbados) opponent with a resounding victory of 6-2 before achieving a solid victory of 10-3 against yet another Bajan fighter which landed him the gold medal.
Farhaad Bacchus, who is no stranger to the international taekwondo scene having competed in Suriname, Dominican Republic, Trinidad, Columbia and Puerto Rico before, had to settle for silver in the final of his match losing to an aggressive Surinamese fighter.
The youngest fighter Orlando Van-Rossum, is also no stranger to the international taekwondo scene. Competing in the junior category, Van-Rossum stood his grounds well against his Surinamese opponent in his semifinal match.
However, the Surinamese edged him out in the last few seconds of the match to win him by a 5-3 margin.
Meanwhile, athletes are currently preparing for 2011 Pan Am Games Qualification tournament set for Lima, Peru in March; the Yu-Sin Open Taekwondo Championships to be held in Suriname in August and the World Qualification tournament for the London 2012 Olympic Games scheduled for Baku, Azerbaijan in June among other tournaments.
Classes are held at the Guyana Teacher’s Union Hall, Woolford Avenue every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 17:00hrs to 18:30hrs.
The GTA is extending gratitude to the Honorable Minister of Sports Dr. Frank Anthony for his timely assistance.