Steven Lopez of the United States became the first five-time world champion as he won the gold medal in the men’s under 80kg category on the opening day of the 2009 WTF World Taekwondo Championships in Copenhagen, Denmark on Oct. 14, 2009. Lopez, the gold medal winner at both 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games and a bronze medalist at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, brushed aside a stiff challenge from Spain’s Nicolas Garcia Hemme in the final match to earn the honor. He won the World Championships titles in 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007.
"The victory means a lot to me. I won a bronze at the Beijing Olympic Games and I haver trained very hard to this day. I made history in taekwondo and I am proud of being part of the history," said Lopez shortly after the final match. The bronze in the category went to Rashad Ahmadov of Azerbaijan and Michaud Sebastien of Canada. In the men’s over 80kg division, Mali’s Daba Keita beat Korea’s Yun-Bae Nam to earn his African country the gold medal. Keita won the gold medal in the same weight division at the 2007 Beijing World Taekwondo Championships. Hossein Tajik of Iran and Arman Chilmanov of Kazakhstan shared the bronze medal in the category. In the women’s under 67kg class, France’s Gwladys Epangue earned her country the first female championships title in taekwondo, as she beat Cuba’s Taimi Castellanos Estrada in the final match. The bronze in the female class went to Sandra Saric of Croatia and Nikolina Kursar of Norway. The 2009 World Taekwondo Championships drew a total of 928 athletes, including 558 men, from 142 countries, the largest ever in WTF Championships history. The 2007 Beijing World Taekwondo Championships attracted 865 athletes from 116 countries.
"The victory means a lot to me. I won a bronze at the Beijing Olympic Games and I haver trained very hard to this day. I made history in taekwondo and I am proud of being part of the history," said Lopez shortly after the final match. The bronze in the category went to Rashad Ahmadov of Azerbaijan and Michaud Sebastien of Canada. In the men’s over 80kg division, Mali’s Daba Keita beat Korea’s Yun-Bae Nam to earn his African country the gold medal. Keita won the gold medal in the same weight division at the 2007 Beijing World Taekwondo Championships. Hossein Tajik of Iran and Arman Chilmanov of Kazakhstan shared the bronze medal in the category. In the women’s under 67kg class, France’s Gwladys Epangue earned her country the first female championships title in taekwondo, as she beat Cuba’s Taimi Castellanos Estrada in the final match. The bronze in the female class went to Sandra Saric of Croatia and Nikolina Kursar of Norway. The 2009 World Taekwondo Championships drew a total of 928 athletes, including 558 men, from 142 countries, the largest ever in WTF Championships history. The 2007 Beijing World Taekwondo Championships attracted 865 athletes from 116 countries.
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