The Australian Poomsae Team has returned from the 2026 World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships in Chuncheon, South Korea, with three medals: one gold and two silver.

Over five days of competition at the largest World Poomsae Championships ever held, Australian athletes made history in both the cadet and masters divisions, and pushed deeper into the draw across more age groups than in recent campaigns.

These results follow a landmark development in the Poomsae Performance Program now established across Australia, under new head coach Josh Flinn.

Carmela Hartnett, Karen Doyle and Pat Petrovski – Gold, Female Over 60 Team

Day 4 delivered a historic moment, with Carmela, Karen and Pat claiming Australia's first-ever World Championships gold in the teams event.

The ladies showed great poise getting through Germany and Great Britain in their early rounds.

After a hard-fought day, the trio then showed immense skill and composure to overcome a strong Austrian team in the final.

Congratulations to Pat, Karen and Carmela, and to their clubs, Songs Taekwondo, Oh Do Kwan Taekwondo and ATI Martial Arts, for all their work in getting them here.

Ella Kim – Silver, Female Cadet Individual

Ella delivered Australia's first medal of the championships on Day 1, and made history as the first Australian to win a Cadet Individual Poomsae medal at a World Championships.

She won four matches on the way to the final, defeating opponents from the Netherlands, Mauritius, the USA and the Philippines, before falling to Korea in the gold medal match.

Congratulations to Ella and her club, HK Taekwondo.

Carmela Hartnett – Silver, Female Under 65 Individual

A day after her team gold, Carmela backed up a brilliant campaign with silver in the Female Under 65 individual division on Day 5, bringing Australia's tally to three medals.

One of the country's best for a number of years, Carmela again showed why she remains a formidable force in Australian Poomsae. She came through strong quarterfinal and semifinal performances against the USA and Spain, before narrowly missing out on gold to an excellent athlete from Germany.

Well done to Carmela and Oh Do Kwan Taekwondo.

For Head Coach Josh Flinn, the team's togetherness stood out as much as the results.

"One of the greatest achievements of this campaign was the incredible sense of togetherness, team spirit and unity demonstrated throughout the Australian Team," Flinn said. "The way everyone supported, encouraged and celebrated one another was something truly special and reflects the culture we are striving to build within Australian Taekwondo."

On the medallists, Flinn added: "These performances deserve enormous recognition, not only for the medals achieved but for the years of preparation, perseverance and commitment behind them. They also provide an inspiration to athletes across all age divisions."

"I want to personally acknowledge and thank our entire national coaching group for their unwavering support, dedication and commitment throughout this campaign. Our national coaching cohort represents a collective passion and determination to develop our athletes, strengthen our high-performance pathway and lead Australian Poomsae into the future. Their willingness to work collaboratively, share knowledge and put the interests of our athletes first is fundamental to the continued growth of our national teams."

To our athletes, I want to express my sincere gratitude and congratulations. The preparation, sacrifices and commitment required to compete at a World Championships cannot be underestimated. Every athlete demonstrated a willingness to challenge themselves, embrace the demands of international competition and put everything on the line in pursuit of success. Their determination, professionalism and courage to step onto the world stage and compete against the very best are qualities we should all be immensely proud of.

Full results

Beyond the podium, Australians reached the semifinals once and the quarterfinals five times, with many more progressing through multiple rounds.

*Kiara Evans' Round of 32 match finished in an exact tie, with presentation scores also level; the result was decided on the judges' total.

Attention now turns to the 2028 World Poomsae Championships, with the focus on building on this campaign's experience and strengthening support for athletes and coaches.

"Our ambition is not simply to achieve results at one World Championships, but to build a sustainable, united and competitive Australian Poomsae Team capable of achieving success on the world stage for years to come," Flinn said.

Congratulations to every athlete, and thank you to the home club coaches, national coaching group, team management, medical staff and families who supported the team in Chuncheon.