After giving South Korea’s men’s taekwondo team its first gold medal in 16 years, Park Tae-joon (20-Kyunghee University) was not smiling when the gold medal was confirmed.

His final opponent, Gashim Magomedov (Azerbaijan), was rolling around on the mat in pain.

Magomedov was knocked out with one minute and two seconds left in the second round, and Park took a moment to assess his condition before sprinting across the Grand Palais octagonal mat with the Korean flag.

Park Tae-joon defeated Magomedov by stoppage in the men’s 58-kilogram taekwondo final at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, on Monday (Aug. 8).

Magomedov, ranked 26th in the world, was the biggest upset of the tournament in the men’s 58-kilogram category.

In the semifinals, he upset Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medalist and No. 4 ranked Vito Della Quilla (ITA).

The unknown Magomedov looked terrifying against Delaquila, landing a series of head kicks in the first round to win 9-4, and then carrying the momentum into the second round to win 11-1.

Heading into the final, some predicted that the ‘dark horse’ Magomedov would prove trickier for Park, who had carefully analyzed his opponent’s game plan.

Injuries proved to be the difference between the two.

In the final, Magomedov went down with 1:07 left in the first round when his legs got tangled in a takedown attempt.

In excruciating pain, Magomedov continued to clutch at his left shin, forcing his Azerbaijani coach to spray him down.

After crossing the threshold with a vicious kick, Magomedov, who met Park in the final, signaled to the referee that he could continue, as if he could never give up the fight.

He appeared to be in good shape for an immediate stoppage, and in fact, Magomedov was even deducted a point for not responding to Park’s offense properly.

The crowd in the Grand Palais applauded Magomedov’s fighting spirit.

In the second round, Magomedov came out firing, landing some sharp head kicks that rattled Park.

However, as the round wore on, Magomedov’s movements slowed down as if he was in pain.

With one minute and two seconds left in the second round, Magomedov was hit by a body kick from Park and turned away in pain.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Park attacked Magomedov repeatedly, forcing Magomedov to fall to the mat again.

Magomedov, whose mouthpiece had fallen out, eventually announced that he could no longer continue.

At the medal ceremony after the match, the two athletes showed their sportsmanship by smiling and hugging as if they had just fought to the death.

In the medalists’ press conference, Magomedov said that Park’s focus was well-deserved as he attacked until the end.

“I just tried to focus on my technique (despite the injury),” Magomedov said. It didn’t work out this time, but I hope to win gold in Los Angeles,” Magomedov said.

“It’s a foul if you kick after the referee says ‘grind’,” Park said in the post-match press area (mix zone). But until then, it’s a set rule to attack. I attacked because the referee didn’t call it,” he explained.

When asked at the official press conference, he replied, “I was taught that it is respectful to your opponent to do your best until they give up, so I tried my best to play until the end.”

When asked about their friendship at the awards ceremony, he said, “I used to see him a lot in international competitions. I apologized to him, but he said it’s a martial art and it’s natural to bump into each other. We encouraged and supported each other,” he said. 토토사이트