Four Invercargill athletes and two officials have been selected to represent New Zealand on one of the main international stages for the sport.
Ashton Gregory Hunt, Cooper Gough, Karl Bayne and Noah Smith will be representing their region and their country in the World Taekwondo Junior Championships in South Korea next month.
XL performance taekwondo master Brock Monaghan-Neutze and black-belt Amanda Smith were also appointed coach and manager, respectively, of the New Zealand delegation.
Smith said the team was made up of six athletes and two officials, so this was the first time Invercargill would have the most representation.
"This is the first time you see this many members coming from the South Island. That is awesome. It’s really exciting."
The other two athletes selected are from Auckland and Taranaki.
Monaghan-Neutze was pleased to see all the hard work had been paying off.
"I am so proud of the team. It is really cool to see them there.
"It is just a long journey. Some of our athletes have set goals three, four years ago and to get there now and actually make the team, it is great."
The New Zealanders would face some top athletes, he said.
"The best in the world will be there ... the best from the ages of 15 to 17 ... It is a stepping stone towards seniors.
"So after this competition, most of them will move to the senior category so this will be a very good preparation for them.
Noah and Cooper previously represented New Zealand at the Oceania Taekwondo Championships in Tahiti in 2022, while this will be the first international competition for Ashton and Karl.
"It’s fantastic to have them coming to the team. It shows Invercargill’s ability to really produce the best athletes in New Zealand," Noah said.
"Mostly the international stage is on a whole other level. New Zealand tournaments aren’t as competitive as it is overseas, and we’re going over to compete against the best in the world for our age group, rather than just fighting kids our age in New Zealand."
Ashton and Karl said they were looking forward to the challenge.
"I’m feeling both excited and nervous as there is a lot of responsibility, but mostly very excited," Ashton said.
Karl agreed.
"It’s crazy to think that I made it. I am really proud and happy that all the work I’ve put in has led to something, so I will just go there to do my best."
All the athletes needed to balance their studies with training.
Cooper said one of his favourite things about taekwondo was it helped him in his personal life.
"I love how you just get to blow all your steam off, so any problem, you can come to training and just kick as hard as you can," he said.
The delegation leaves New Zealand on September 27 and the competition runs from October 1-6.
