Hunt for taekwondo talent to reach Guwahati on Jan 17-18 | Guwahati News
Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS) will hold a talent identification initiative for taekwondo athletes in Guwahati on Jan 17-18 next year as part of their initiative called ‘IIS Taekwondo’s Fighting Chance’.Their aim is to scout and select eight female taekwondo athletes between the ages of 16 and 26 for a long-term high-performance training system aimed at preparing them for the 2028 LA Olympics. Besides Guwahati, they will also hold the trials in Trivandrum on Jan 24-25.According to the release, athletes who will make the initial cut from the two regional trials will undergo a two-week training and assessment camp at IIS in Vijayanagar, followed by a two-month training camp in Europe and a four-week high-performance camp in South Korea.The top eight athletes will then be offered a full-time IIS contract and receive all the athlete benefits under the IIS high-performance system. As far as eligibility is concerned, those interested must hold a blue belt or above, should have competed at Indian junior or senior nationals, be fit to compete in a full-contact trial fight, and have no history of doping suspension or disciplinary violations. Female fighters with a high level of combat experience from other martial arts will also be taken into consideration.The programme, meanwhile, will be led by Gary Hall, who played a major role in developing the high-performance taekwondo structure in Great Britain.“In my decades of experience as a sports administrator, I have seen such programmes yield success. This is a systematic, well-mapped plan that can change the face of taekwondo in the country. My team and I have done this before and there’s no reason we can’t do it in India with its vast talent,” said Hall in the release.
