Victorian Kerim Yilmaz has secured Australia it's first male World Taekwondo Cadet Championships medal overnight, with the young fighter claiming Bronze in the Mens 156cm event.
The last time Australia medalled at the World Cadet Taekwondo Championships was in 2019 when Tiarnagh Sweeney won Bronze in Uzbekistan and was the first Australian cadet to medal.
Hailing from the Olympic Martial Arts Centre in Melbourne's northern suburbs, the 14-year-old powered through his rounds on day two, defeating Poland (R32), India (R16) and Jordan (QF) before a semifinal loss to Thailand.
It was the result Australia needed to spur the team on after Mackenzie Macdonald (Hall's Taekwondo) narrowly missed out on a semifinal berth on day one after losing in the quarter-finals to France.
With tough matchups right from the get-go, the young Aussie contingent continues to give their all in an event that serves as a crucial stage for athletes to develop during their time as cadets.
Days one and two have seen strong performances from Australia's rising stars.
Day 2 / August 29
Elijah Wu (Martial Arts Spirit) R64 def India, R32 lost to Kazakhstan
Lucas Lai (Notorious Martial Arts), R32 def Chinese Taipei, R16 lost to AIN
Andrea Ishac (Hall's Taekwondo) R32 Lost to Spain
Lacie Gleeson (Hall's Taekwondo) R32 Lost Iran
Day 1 / August 28
Theodore Kaing (Notorious Martial Arts) R32 lost to Greece
Lawson Knight (One Taekwondo School) R32 lost to Chinese Taipei
Kierah Ly-Diep (Forza Taekwondo) R16 lost to Greece
Matilda Purvis (Adelaide Taekwondo Academy) R16 lost to Korea
With 10 Aussies left to fight, day three will see Bilal Atay (Hall's Taekwondo), Jayden Vuong (Revolution TKD & BJJ), Elle-Maree Ghetto-Tarantolo (Irontiger Australia), Chelsea Gomez (Taya Taekwondo) and Phoebe Fan (Adelaide Taekwondo Academy) on the mats for Australia.
To follow the World Taekwondo Cadet Championships, please visit the World Taekwondo website or click the links below.
Draw - Day 3 - CLICK HERE
Livestream - CLICK HERE
Results - CLICK HERE
