The Australian Taekwondo night of nights celebrated its athletes, coaches, referees, clubs and volunteers at the 2026 Green Carpet Awards Gala. The night recognised the year's best performances on the mat and the people who make the sport run off it, with the two pinnacle medals going to Carmela Hartnett and Shrijana Ghising.

Carmela Hartnett has been awarded the Lauren Burns Medal, Australian Taekwondo's pinnacle honour for an able-bodied athlete. Hartnett became the first Australian Poomsae athlete to win the award in the past five years. The medal goes to one athlete each year, across Kyorugi and Poomsae, for outstanding results at state, national and international level, and Hartnett's 2026 season delivered at every one of them. The Taekwondo Oh Do Kwan athlete won Individual Silver at the 2026 Poomsae World Championships, then joined Pat Petrovski and Karen Doyle to win Team Gold at the same event. She also became the 2026 World Hanmadang Champion, giving her a world title to sit alongside her two World Championships medals. Carmela also achieved Golds in all the WT President’s Cup, Australian Open and Oceania Championships. Hartnett is one of only two able-bodied Australian woman to have competed at a World Championship’s level in both Poomsae and Kyorugi, the other being Bronwyn Butterworth. She has done all of it while continuing to coach at home in Western Australia, passing her experience on to the next generation of athletes at Taekwondo Oh Do Kwan. The medal was one of several honours for Hartnett on the night. She was also named Senior Athlete of the Year (Poomsae) and received Recognition of Achievement awards for both of her World Championships medals.

Shrijana Ghising was awarded the Janine Watson Medal, Australian Taekwondo's pinnacle Para award, after a season that made history. The Hall's Taekwondo athlete won Australia's first-ever Gold medal at a World Taekwondo Para Grand Prix, beating opponents ranked world number eleven, six and two, and then the reigning world number one. Earlier in the year she won Gold at the Oceania President's Cup, the Australian Open and the Oceania Championships. In all, Ghising defeated seven top-ten Para athletes in 2026. Her run followed a four-year wait for the citizenship that opened the door to international competition, and she wasted no time once it arrived. Ghising was also a finalist for Senior Athlete of the Year (Kyorugi). The Janine Watson Medal is presented annually to one Para athlete, male or female, for outstanding results at state, national or international level, and is open to both Kyorugi and Poomsae.

This medal is special as Janine Watson announces her retirement from competition, after twelve years straight as the World Number 1. Watson’s retirement will be covered in depth in a future article, but for now we thank Janine for being such a fantastic patron to our sport and the para community and wish her all the best.

Award Winners:

Senior Athlete of the Year (Kyorugi): Gaby Blewitt, Spirit Taekwondo.

The 2025 World Championships Bronze medallist won Gold at the Indonesian Open and the Kimunyong Cup, Silver at the US Open, and Bronze at the Australian Open and Oceania President's Cup. Blewitt is also a two-time Best Female Athlete Award winner.

Senior Athlete of the Year (Poomsae): Carmela Hartnett, Taekwondo Oh Do Kwan.

Hartnett's Individual Silver and Team Gold at the 2026 Poomsae World Championships, along with her World Hanmadang title, earned her the senior Poomsae award from a field that included Kiara Evans, Pat Petrovski, Andrew Tran and Karen Doyle.

Junior Athlete of the Year (Female): Mackenzie Macdonald, Hall's Taekwondo.

Macdonald qualified for the Youth Olympic Games and won fifteen international medals across nine countries in the past three years. They included Gold at the Belgium Open, Oceania Championships, Australian Open and Kimunyong Cup, plus a Round-of-16 finish at the Junior World Championships in Uzbekistan. Macdonald will represent Australia at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar later this year.

Junior Athlete of the Year (Male): Leonardo Angell, MUSA Taekwondo.

Ranked number one in Australia in his division, Angell won Gold at the Dutch Open, Silver at the Belgium Open and Bronze at the Korea Open. He also mentors younger athletes as a Junior Development Coach at his club.

Performance Coach of the Year: Josh Flinn, Flinn Taekwondo Academy.

Appointed lead coach of the Poomsae Performance Pathway Program early in 2026, Flinn built a program now delivered across four states. As national Head Coach, he led the Poomsae team to a large medal haul at the Oceania Championships and a successful World Championships.

Community Coach of the Year: Karen Doyle, ATI Martial Arts.

Doyle provides one-on-one Para Poomsae coaching in her own time and holds Level 2 Para Poomsae and WT Poomsae Coach accreditation. She has grown ATI Malaga's Para Taekwondo program from a single athlete to more than thirty students.

Community Club of the Year: Irontiger Taekwondo.

Led by Master Di Carn, the female-led and female-coached club takes members from age three through to adults. Its Leadership and Academic Coaching Pathway lets senior students mentor younger members and move into coaching, alongside pathways from recreational training to competition.

Volunteer of the Year: Kelsey O'Leary, Professional Taekwondo.

O'Leary volunteers at club, state and national level. She is President of her club's Athlete Program Fundraising Committee, a state competition referee, and a National Kyorugi Referee Committee member who helped design the National Kyorugi Referee Framework.

Referee of the Year (Poomsae): Ben Flinn, Flinn Taekwondo Academy.

Flinn officiated and served as referee chair at five Queensland events this year and was selected to officiate at the National Championships. As Queensland referee chair, he also coordinates and delivers referee courses, mentoring the officials coming through the ranks.

Referee of the Year (Kyorugi): Christopher Piller, Red Dragon Taekwondo.

Piller stepped into the role of NSW Referee Director this year, delivering workshops and support for referees across the state. He also took on team leadership roles at national events, with his on-court knowledge growing throughout the season.

Life Membership: Jean Kfoury OAM

The gala also inducted Grand Master Jean Kfoury OAM as a Life Member of Australian Taekwondo. An 8th Dan with more than 45 years in the sport, he has led the organisation as President to an A1 governance rating from World Taekwondo and serves as Vice President, Oceania, of the Commonwealth Taekwondo Union. In May he received the Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to taekwondo. GM Jean Kfoury OAM has concluded his three consecutive terms as the Australian Taekwondo President, ending a fantastic nine year reign at the helm. His induction as a life member is a fitting fairwell to one of the great ambassadors of our nation.

Australian Taekwondo congratulates every winner and finalist from the 2026 Green Carpet Awards Gala. Their results, and the work of the coaches, referees, clubs and volunteers behind them, reflect a community that continues to grow at every level, from local clubs to the world stage.