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Technique VS Simply Big



Jan 2018-- The male heavyweight category is a top draw in any combat sport – and so it is with taekwondo.

In no other weight category in the game have so many top athletes lost their form since the Rio Olympics, meaning the winner of this category in the Grand Slam in Wuxi defies prediction. There has even been a generational change since the Worlds in Muju in June 2017. Previously the category was all about size, strength and physique. Now it is more about speed, technique and experience.

The top seed is 2016 Olympic Champ Radik Isaev of Azerbaijan. He is tall and strong, with a very difficult style to fight, but his form has deteriorated since his Rio triumph.
As per the match tree, Iran’s Sajjad Mardani and Korea’s Seung-hwan Lee are placed to fight him first. Mardani failed to medal in Rio, but came back to win the Grand Prix Final in Baku in 2016, Team Iran needs a victory, and Mardani is powerful and hungry.
Lee is an unknown quantity: He qualified not via Olympic rankings, but via the qualification tournament.

The two Russians in the division are both highly professional and are definite contenders. Roman Kutnekov and Vladislav Larin. Larin is slim for this category, but appears to be as strong as his opponents, and has the advantages of speed and a mastery of machine gun kicks.

On the other side of the match tree is the towering sensation from Niger, Abdoul Issofou. The 2016 Olympic silver medalist won the MVP award at the Worlds in Muju in 2017 and is a canny fighter with both height and speed. Then there is World Champion Alex Bachman of Germany, who surprised the crowd with his win in Muju, beating Larin in the finals.

And Great Britain’s Mahama “It’s Cho Time!” Cho, one of the most entertaining fighters among the heavyweights.

Finally, Kyo-don “The Bear” In – who recently won a battle with cancer – has been working his way back to the highest level of the game.

But this category could well be decided by physical preparation. Unlike regular taekwondo matches, the Grand Slam features five, two-minute rounds for the medal matches, rather than the normal three, two-minute rounds. Athletes with technique will have an advantage other those who are simply big.

Date:11:17   1/8/2018

Code:35896


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