HONG KONG, China (Dec 3, 2024) - One of the beauties of the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships is its ability to bring together athletes of all ages from all around the world. In one of the most fiercely contested categories in Hong Kong, China, Manfred Stadtmüller and Sylvia Höhfeld of Germany were able to emerge victorious in the Pair Over 60 event.
Both athletes view their moment of glory at the Hong Kong Coliseum as a career highlight. It was Höhfeld’s first medal at the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships, while for Stadtmüller it completed a full set having previously won an individual silver and bronze.
“Facebook and WhatsApp have exploded! All my friends and my family are happy, so I am honoured,” Stadtmüller exclaimed as he reflected on the pair’s success.
The impact Taekwondo has had on both of their lives is clear to see as they share their respective stories, and so too is the pride they have at being crowned world champions.
“For me it is very important. I go to work, and then it is Taekwondo, Taekwondo, Taekwondo, then sleep! In my club, I am a trainer in Taekwondo, and I have a Poomsae team. It is very interesting to train them,” Höhfeld shared to underline the centrality of Taekwondo to her life.
She rediscovered Taekwondo relatively late in her life, having been discouraged from practising it when she was younger, and the journey has taken her to the pinnacle of Poomsae.
“The first time I practised Taekwondo was 39, so very late. And then I became a black belt and went to the World Championships,” she said.
Stadtmüller’s experience goes back further, before he turned from Kyorugi to Poomsae later in his life.
“I started age 19, so I have had 45 years,” he said.
“I started to fight, and then I have now done Poomsae for 20 years. I progressed to black belt.”
He is coached by his wife Tanya Stadtmüller, who herself is a former team world champion in Poomsae. Stadtmüller is especially optimistic that success can run in the family, and his youngest son can thrive in Freestyle Poomsae.
Stadtmüller and Höhfeld only began preparing as a pair in the over 60 division for the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships earlier this year, but they have already brought the best out of each other in competition.
That is despite the obstacles provided by living around 700 kilometres apart – Stadtmüller is from Bavaria in southern Germany, while Höhfeld is from the Düsseldorf area in western Germany.
“We are both the individual German champion in our age categories, so the question was would we be a pair for the over 60 category and it was a yes!” Stadtmüller explained of how their pairing came about.
“We had two or three weekends training, and online training once a month. We have the same style, and this is from the trainer – he saw it.”
Following their achievements in Hong Kong, China, Stadtmüller believes the pair can serve as an inspiration for younger generations competing in Poomsae.
“When I was younger, my idol was older, and this was for 45 years from my beginning in Taekwondo, so step by step. And [now], the younger generation look to us!” he said.
Stadtmüller and Höhfeld’s is a remarkable story from the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships, and one which demonstrates the global power of Taekwondo.
