Tokyo, Japan, July 25, 2021: Ulugbek Rashitov won Uzbekistan’s first Olympic taekwondo gold medal in dramatic fashion by beating Bradly Sinden of Great Britain in the final of the men’s -68kg at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday.
Rashitov, 19, landed a four-point turning body kick inside the final 15 seconds to turn a two-point deficit into a two-point lead and the featherweight hung on for a 34-29 victory to claim Uzbekistan’s first ever medal in taekwondo - and their first medal here in Tokyo.
“It’s great, the best emotion ever. Nothing can beat winning gold,” Rashitov said. “I believed only in gold, I trained only for gold.”
Rashitov is relatively inexperienced on the world stage but his success echoes Uzbekistan’s major strides in combat sports, including the Uzbek boxing team’s breakthrough performance in the 2016 Rio Olympics when it won seven medals including three golds.
Defending world champion Sinden, who fell agonisingly short of becoming Britain’s first male Olympic gold medallist in taekwondo, had his hands full early with Rashitov finding gaps to land shots to the trunk. The momentum seemed to swing in Sinden’s favour in the third round and he levelled the scores with a combination head and trunk kick.
Sinden got his nose in front for the first time since the first round and looked set to claim a famous victory but the tenacious Rashitov fought back valiantly, landing a superb turning body kick to regain the lead in the dying seconds.
China’s Zhao Shuai beat Korean legend Lee Dae-hoon 17-15 to win the bronze medal.
