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Why Police dominated Korean Ambassador’s Cup
Police Taekwondo Club celebrating the overall trophy at the 2024 Korean Ambassador's Cup. PHOTO/ABDUL-NASSER SSEMUGABI
What you need to know:
The Kibuli-based club gathered an enviable 10 gold, five silver, and nine bronze medals to emerge the overall champions among the 25 clubs that graced the two-day event.
Thorough preparation, facilitation, and a Korean Master are the key factors behind Uganda Police’s success at the 2024 Korean Ambassador’s Cup Taekwondo Competition at the Lugogo Indoor Arena over the weekend.
The Kibuli-based club gathered an enviable 10 gold, five silver, and nine bronze medals to emerge the overall champions among the 25 clubs that graced the two-day event.
Bantamweight Cranma Wakroth and finweight Farouk Ogwal—gold medalists at the 2023 edition—repeated their magic by scooping gold, helping Police to defend their trophy.
Among women, Rebecca Amongin and Madina Nankya, gold medalists last year, did not reach the finals, but flyweight Faith Adiye and lightweight Veronica Ayo stepped up to the occasion to clinch gold and enhance Police’s fortunes in 2024.
“We prepared for three months and had four training camps: Lira, Gulu, Kitgum, and Kampala before we selected the best team to represent us. Our bosses also facilitated us well for the preps and the tournament,” Police team manager Peter Malavu told Daily Monitor.
“Our Korean Master Kim, also played a crucial role in teaching us the basics, which are the foundation of taekwondo. That’s why we even won gold in poomsae.”
Malavu also attributed the club’s success to the talent identification camp in northern Uganda in March 2023. “We held trials with different clubs in northern Uganda and scouted athletes we needed in the weight divisions we weren’t performing well,” Malavu said.
After a year of fine-tuning, some of these recruits: flyweight Jimmy Otema, scouted from Gulu, featherweight Maureen Lamunu, scouted [from Kitgum] and welterweight Kevin Kelly Beraparwoth, scouted from Lira, are gold medalists.
Uganda Prisons came second overall with six gold, two silver, and four bronze medals. Regional Kenya, with 14 medals in total, finished third, and Ragumo Kenya finished fourth with four medals overall.
CSCA, a destitute children’s charity club, took the junior boys’ and girls’ titles with a combined 18 medals, five of which were gold, followed by Uganda Prisons and Regional Kenya.
Upon opening the event, Park Sung-soo, the Korean Ambassador in Uganda, commended the Uganda Taekwondo Federation, coaches, officials, and athletes for the event. “Now taekwondo serves as an art and a means of connecting us and bringing us together in Uganda,” the ambassador said.
