CHUNCHEON, Korea (Oct 4, 2024) - The World Taekwondo Junior Championships is where many of the sport’s stars have burst onto the global scene, and on the basis of his performances on his way to men’s -51kg gold, Aristeidis Nikolaos Psarros could be another.
The Greek athlete was a standout performer on day three in Chuncheon. Sealing the gold with a second-round victory by technical superiority underlined how dominant he had been on the scoring front throughout most of his matches.
Yet it was a stroke of good fortune which led Psarros to discover the sport he loves and in which has been crowned a junior world champion.
He shared the remarkable story of how a Taekwondo club opened on the floor beneath his home in Athens, and it proved an immediate perfect match.
“When I was younger, I was very annoying!” Psarros joked.
“I couldn’t stop moving, and just one random day a Taekwondo club opened underneath my home. I started there, and I loved it from the first training. I am lucky!”
During the men’s -51kg competition in Chuncheon, Psarros faced a difficult opening match in the round of 32 against Korea’s Eunsu Seo, but came through it in three rounds. After that, he produced a host of high-scoring displays and won four of his remaining eight rounds across his next four matches by a 12-point margin or more.
The early victory against Seo gave Psarros the belief he could go all the way to gold.
“I think I had a good performance. My draw sheet was really tough, I had the first match against the Korean champion, so after that match I was so confident and I gave my 100% in every fight,” he reflected.
Psarros’ closely fought semi-final against Amirmohammad Nasirahmadi of Iran and his final against Moldova’s Artiom Rosca were marked by the vocal support of his Greek team-mates. The tight-knit nature of the Greek team helps to drive the -51kg star forward with his performances.
“The support of my team-mates always makes me fight better. They motivate me, so it was an extra boost for me,” he said.
Greece have not won an Olympic gold medal in Taekwondo since Michail Mouroutsos’s men’s -58kg victory when it debuted as a full sport at Sydney 2000.
However, Psarros’ eyes are firmly set on his ultimate goal of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028, and he believes this talented younger generation of Greek athletes offers prosperous signs for the future.
“This year we had a national camp for two weeks after many years, so it was helpful. We helped each other a lot, and we built the team spirit,” he said.
“I think this generation has so much potential. We have a great national team this year and in the previous years, so I think we are the future of Greece!”
While Psarros enjoys being on the front foot against his opponents, he insisted he also places importance of the defensive element of his game. To achieve his ambition of medalling at Los Angeles 2028, he has identified building his stamina and how he manages matches against particular opponents as areas to work on.
“I like to attack. However, when I need to defend I have to defend as well. Mostly I am an attacking player,” he said.
“I think I have to work on my stamina, because I got really tired in the first fight. I have to improve my stamina and learn how to control better the distance between certain players, because I am a tall player and I have a problem with shorter players.”
On the road to Los Angeles 2028 are multiple major Taekwondo events. Psarros has the European Grand Prix at junior level in Bucharest, Romania in December, and next year he is targeting a medal at the senior World Championships in Wuxi, China.
His success at the World Taekwondo Junior Championships has fuelled him with an added sense of belief.
When asked what he has learned from the event, he replied: “That I have to believe in myself and that I never have to think that someone is better than me, because I thought that, but finally I am world champion.”
A remarkable journey for Psarros entered its latest chapter in Chuncheon, and stands him in good stead as he looks to contribute to a bright future for Greek Taekwondo.
