Croatian taekwondo fighter wins silver at Grand Prix in Korea

Marko Golubić secured Croatia’s silver medal in the under-68-kilogram category at the World Taekwondo Grand Prix in Muju, South Korea, after winning four bouts on his way to the final.

Golubić opened the tournament with a 2-0 victory over Russia’s Magomed Abdusalamov. He then beat fellow Croatian Matija Črep 2-1 in the round of 16 and defeated China’s Yushuai Liang by the same score in the quarterfinals. A 2-0 win over American Maikol Rodriguez sent him into the final, where South Korea’s Jinho Mun stopped him 2-0.

The G-6 tournament brings together the world’s highest-ranked fighters, with qualification based on the World Taekwondo Olympic ranking. It took place at Taekwondowon, a sports complex dedicated to taekwondo. Muju was the second stop in this year’s Grand Prix series, following Rome, with Paris and the final event in Astana, Kazakhstan, still to come.

Golubić’s silver gave Croatia three medals in Muju. Nika Karabatić won bronze in the under-57-kilogram category, while Dora Meštrović took bronze in the under-67-kilogram division. Magdalena Matić finished fifth above 67 kilograms after two wins and a quarterfinal loss to South Korea’s Da-bin Song.