Sarah Stevenson facts for kids
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| Full name | Sarah Diana Stevenson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 30 March 1983 Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England |
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Medal record
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Sarah Diana Stevenson MBE (born March 30, 1983) is a famous British taekwondo athlete. She made history by winning Great Britain's first Olympic medal in taekwondo.
Sarah became a world champion in 2001. She won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Games. This was her third time competing in the Olympics for Great Britain. She faced a tough challenge but won the bronze medal after an appeal.
In 2011, Sarah became a world champion again. This was a huge achievement, as she had lost both her parents to cancer the year before.
Sarah was chosen to compete in the London 2012 Games. She also took the Olympic oath at the opening ceremony. This meant she spoke on behalf of all the athletes. An injury before the Games led to her early exit. She had broken her hand but still won silver at the Olympic qualifiers.
In 2013, Sarah announced she was stopping competitive fighting. She decided to become a coach for the Great Britain team.
Contents
Early Life and Training
Sarah Stevenson was born in Doncaster, England. She went to Don Valley High School in Scawthorpe. Sarah started learning taekwondo when she was just 7 years old.
Sarah's Amazing Career
Sarah began her career by becoming a Junior World Champion in 1998. In 2000, she earned third place in a World Qualification Tournament. This helped her qualify for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Women's 67 kg.
Her success caught the eye of martial arts movie star Jackie Chan. He even sponsored her while promoting his film Shanghai Noon in the UK. At the 2000 Olympics, Sarah lost in the semifinal and then in the bronze medal match.
The next year, she became a world champion in 2001. She won the Women's Middleweight title at the 2001 World Taekwondo Championships. She beat the 2000 Olympic gold medalist, Chen Zhong, in the final. This made her the first British Taekwondo World champion!
At the 2004 Olympics, she was eliminated in the first round. Sarah later trained in Manchester. She was a member of the Allstars Taekwondo Academy in Doncaster. Her coach was Master Gary Sykes.
The 2008 Olympics Challenge
At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Sarah faced a big challenge. In her quarterfinal match, the judges made a mistake. They did not give her two points for a high-kick to the head. This would have put her in the lead with only 10 seconds left.
After the match, the British team protested. They showed video of the kick. The judges then changed their decision! Sarah moved on to the semifinal. She lost her semifinal match and also twisted her ankle.
However, she still got to compete for the bronze medal. She won against Noha Abd Rabo from Egypt. This victory earned Britain its first Olympic medal in taekwondo!
The tournament director explained the decision:
"The competition supervisory board has looked into this matter deeply, has made video analysis which has been open to all the referees and judges. In applying paragraph two of page 64 of the competition rules of the World Taekwondo Federation we have to change this result and we have to declare the British player as winner. We are very sorry to the spectators of China but justice is first. Thank you for understanding."
Because of this judging error, new electronic scoring systems are being tested. These systems would be inside the body protectors. However, this technology is still new. Sarah and other athletes do not always prefer this system.
The 2012 Olympics and Retirement
Sarah Stevenson was chosen to take the Competitors oath at the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. This was a great honor. She lost in the first round to American Paige McPherson.
In 2013, Sarah decided to retire from competing. She then started a new role as a coach for the Great Britain taekwondo team.
Sarah's Top Achievements
- 2011 World Taekwondo Championships: Gold medal
- 2010 European Championships: Gold medal
- 2009 British Open International: Gold medal
- 2008 Summer Olympics: Bronze medal
- 2006 Commonwealth Taekwondo Championships: Gold medal
- 2005 World Taekwondo Championships: Silver medal
- 2005 European Championships: Gold medal
- 2004 European Championships: Gold medal
- 2001 World Taekwondo Championships: Gold medal
Personal Life and Honors
Sarah Stevenson was given the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). This was in the 2012 New Year Honours for her great contributions to martial arts.
In January 2014, Sarah was made a Freeman of her hometown, Doncaster. This is a special honor given by the city.
See also
In Spanish: Sarah Stevenson para niños
