BALLAJURA freestyle taekwondo athlete Hadley Rachbind is aiming to win gold at the Taekwondo International World Championships in 2020, after winning two bronze medals on world stages this year.
The 17-year-old ATI Martial Arts Malaga member and instructor won a bronze medal in the semi-contact taekwondo category at the International Taekwon-Do Federation World Cup held in Sydney last month and another bronze at the Open World Championships in the UK in July.
Rachbind, who has been doing taekwondo for 14 years, said he enjoyed competing with people who had similar interests.
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READ NOW“Being able to represent my country at all these competitions is always a big honour,” he said,
“Coming home with medals always makes you feel good because you know months of training pays off.
“I am trying to compete as much as possible, that is why I went to the World Cup straight after the open world championships.
“All the guys I fought, I keep in touch.”
The Servite College Year 12 student said if freestyle taekwondo was included in the Olympic Games in future, he would want to compete.
Having started training in ATI’s Dragon program, he now teaches a beginner class for kids aged under-12.
“As an instructor, you kind of think back when you were that age and how I used to look up to other instructors,” he said.
“It is cool to see they kind of look up to me now as time has gone on.”
He is currently preparing for an ATI competition in November and the Arnold Classic Taekwondo Championships held in Melbourne in March.