On Saturday (18 June), the CEFTA Open 2011 Taekwondo Olympic Hopes Tournament was held in the sports hall at Municipal School Complex No. 2 on Jana Pawła II Street. Before the young taekwondo athletes entered the mats, the event was officially opened. Those attending the opening, besides the competitors and coaches, included, among others, the Mayor of Bolesławiec Piotr Roman and the Mayor of Prnjavor Darko Tomaš. The Mayor of Prnjavor received a commemorative tournament medal, while Piotr Roman received a certificate of recognition from the president of the Polish Olympic Taekwondo Association. The certificate was awarded for his contribution to the development of Olympic taekwondo. The tournament’s special guest was Ryszard Tomczyk, who, among other things, presented medals to the winners.
Around 90 competitors from Slovakia and Poland took part in the competition. They competed in two age categories. The cadet category was for 12–14-year-olds, while the junior category was for 15–17-year-olds. The bouts, often highly spectacular, took place on two mats. The male and female competitors gave no quarter during the fights.
5 medals for UKS Ilyo Bolesławiec
The athletes coached by Mariusz Sulma won as many as 5 medals. The gold medals went to: Kamil Serafin and Paulina Stojanowska. Remigiusz Różnicki won silver. The bronze medals went to: Mateusz Boczarski and Wiktoria Knapczyk. Kamil Serafin and Paulina Stojanowska were also named the tournament’s best male and female junior competitors.
The Olympic Hopes Tournament was held with the support of the Municipality of Bolesławiec and the OVB group and Extra Dach. UKS Ilyo also extends special thanks to Zbigniew Kowalczyk.
(information: UKS Ilyo/MZ)