Guadalajara, Mexico (November 23, 2022) – After seven days of elite taekwondo competition at the 2022 World Taekwondo Championships, Team Canada concluded the event with three quarterfinalists and strong performances from the entire team.
After being cancelled and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, World Taekwondo brought back the World Championships and hosted the much-anticipated event at the Centro Acuático CODE Metropolitano in Guadalajara, Mexico from November 14th to 20th, 2022.
Ashley Kraayeveld (W-62kg), Jordan Stewart (M-87kg) and Nicholas Hoefling (M-54kg), all reached the quarterfinals in their respective weight classes and finished tied for 5th place. As the second seed in the women’s -62kg event, Ashley Kraayeveld received a bye through the first round. After being victorious in the Round of 32 against Korea and the Round of 16 against Iran, she came up short against Feruza Sadikova of Uzbekistan in the quarterfinals. Jordan Stewart was seeded eighth in the men’s -87kg weight class. After his opening round bye and two victories against Sweden and Spain, he fell in a close quarterfinal match to Serbia’s Mahdi Khodabakhshi – the eventual World Champion. Nicholas Hoefling had a similar experience in the men’s -54kg event, earning two wins against Senegal and Turkey to start then taking a loss against the eventual silver medallist, Cesar Rodriguez of Mexico, in the quarterfinals.
Alongside Canada’s three quarterfinalists, were six athletes that reached the Round of 16 and thereby all finishing tied for 9th place in the World – Viviane Tranquille (W-46kg), Skylar Park (W-57kg), Melissa Pagnotta (W-67kg), Yohan Chang (M-58kg), Braven Park (M-63kg), Taeku Park (M-74kg).
Taekwondo Canada’s High Performance Director Dr. Allan Wrigley commented on the team’s performance and experience, “I am extremely proud of how our athletes performed both on the matts as well as in the stands supporting each other. We are continuing to focus on improving as a country, and despite missing out on some medal opportunities, overall, the team has improved their results compared to the 2019 World Championships. We have outstanding athlete and coaching talent, so we just need to trust in the process and the results will come.”
Taekwondo Canada would like to congratulate and thank all the athletes, coaches and support staff that attended the Guadalajara 2022 World Taekwondo Championships!
Full Team Canada results can be found below. For complete results from the Guadalajara 2022 World Taekwondo Championships please click here.
| Name | Hometown | Discipline | Division | Result |
| Ashley Kraayeveld | Mississauga, ON | Kyorugi | W-62kg | Quarterfinals |
| Nicholas Hoefling | Campbellville, ON | Kyorugi | M-54kg | Quarterfinals |
| Jordan Stewart | Toronto, ON | Kyorugi | M-87kg | Quarterfinals |
| Viviane Tranquille | Champlain, QC | Kyorugi | W-49kg | Round of 16 |
| Skylar Park | Winnipeg, MB | Kyorugi | W-57kg | Round of 16 |
| Melissa Pagnotta | Toronto, ON | Kyorugi | W-67kg | Round of 16 |
| Yohan Chang | Vaughan, ON | Kyorugi | M-58kg | Round of 16 |
| Braven Park | Winnipeg, ON | Kyorugi | M-63kg | Round of 16 |
| Taeku Park | Winnipeg, ON | Kyorugi | M-74kg | Round of 16 |
| Angelique Orozco | Toronto, ON | Kyorugi | W-46kg | Round of 32 |
| Rachel Cuma | Uxbridge, ON | Kyorugi | W-73kg | Round of 32 |
| Rachel Fountain | Waterloo, ON | Kyorugi | W+73kg | Round of 32 |
| Marc-André Bergeron | Québec City, QC | Kyorugi | M+87kg | Round of 32 |
| Sophia Fokas | Richmond Hill, ON | Kyorugi | W-53kg | Round of 64 |
| Hervan Nkogho Mengue | Québec City, QC | Kyorugi | M-68kg | Round of 64 |
| Tormod Davis | Ketch Harbour, NS | Kyorugi | M-80kg | Round of 64 |
About Taekwondo Canada:
Taekwondo Canada is the official governing body of Taekwondo in Canada, overseeing the sport in all Provinces and Territories. Taekwondo Canada is recognized by World Taekwondo, the International Olympic Committee, PATU and Sport Canada. Taekwondo Canada will continue to be a leading nation in the sport by providing leadership and opportunities to enable its participants to achieve their goals.
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Dave Harris
Executive Director
(519) 859-7410
dharris@taekwondo-canada.com