Two back-to-back "Grand Slams" are unprecedented
A LARBERT teenager has strengthened her claim for inclusion in Great Britain's taekwondo team for the 2016 Rio Olympics by winning two top international championships...in just seven days.
Asia Bailey's remarkable achievements in Hamburg and Eindhoven this month have been likened to winning two tennis "Grand Slams" back to back.
A member of Falkirk's Central Taekwondo Academy and a pupil at Larbert High School, Asia (15) has had a phenomenal year.
In February she took part in the Swedish Open Championships, her first time competing in the seniors. Despite being only 15, she managed to beat Ukraine, Sweden and Russia to reach the final where she narrowly lost to the current European Under 21 Champion. A Silver Medal at her first senior event was a great result.
But this month Asia exceeded all expectations by winning two A Class International Gold Medals only seven days apart.
First, she fought in the Junior Female -44kg division at the German Open in Hamburg, Europe's biggest A Class event and a selection event for the Great Britain Team for this year's Junior European Championships. Asia took Gold after defeating Holland, Belgium, Germany, Sweden and Denmark.
Then just a few days later she fought in the Senior Female -46kg category at the Dutch Open in Eindhoven. The day got off to a dramatic start; Asia's taxi didn't turn up and she had to run flat out to the sports centre, arriving just in time for her first match!
It was a particularly tough category with twenty players from twelve countries, most of whom were very experienced National Team players. But Asia produced her best performance to date, beating Canada, Germany, Kazakhstan, France and Croatia in the final.
This was an unprecedented result for a 15 year old – she becomes the youngest ever British athlete to take a Senior A Class Gold.
Reflecting on her wins in Germany and Holland, Asia said: "I was really happy to win the gold in Germany as it will help with my selection for this year's Junior Europeans. I wasn't expecting to do so well in Holland because I was competing with the seniors. My coach said to just enjoy the tournament and get some good experience. It turned out to be my best event yet".
Next up for Asia is the Belgian Open in April and hopefully the European Under 21 Championships in Moldova – where she now has a very strong case to be selected for the British Team for this event. In May she'll compete at the Spanish Open, the Austrian Open in June and then back to Korea for further training.
Her success this year follows a very successful 2012 when she had a hat-trick of gold medal-winning performances – beating the world's best juniors at the Dutch Open, the British National Championships and the Croatian Open.
This led to her being nominated for BBC'S Young Sports Personality of the Year in December.
Asia's rise in Taekwondo has been meteoric considering she's only fifteen and only took up intense training in 2011 when she joined Scotland's High Performance Development Programme. And her stunning progress has prompted speculation that she could be in the GB Taekwondo team at the 2016 Rio Olympics where she'd follow in the footsteps of her heroes Jade Jones and Sarah Stevenson.
Asia trains for at least one hour every morning before school and a further two hours every evening under the expert guidance of Scotland's High Performance Coach, Nikos Jakubiak. Considering she has missed a lot of school days due to attending training camps and competing abroad, she has performed exceptionally well academically. She passed all eight of her Standard Grades at Credit level, with seven 1s and one 2, and is now studying for five Highers and has been given target grades of five As.
Asia's coach Nikos said: "Asia's story is inspiring. She has a high work ethic and a genuine passion for taekwondo. I have seen how quickly she has progressed in the sport over the past year and I can see the tremendous potential she has".
Asia's father, seventh dan David Bailey, is also Taekwondo Scotland's Head of Team. He said: "It is amazing how quickly Asia has developed into a real force on the international circuit. Winning a senior A class gold at 15 is unheard of. It is exciting to think what she might achieve as she gains more experience and her skills continue to develop".
Picture of Asia attached.
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