Matt Bush (taekwondo)
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| Nationality |  United Kingdom | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 22 December 1988 Pembrokeshire, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United Kingdom | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Para Taekwondo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | F44 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | +80kg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Matt Bush (born 22 December 1988) is a Welsh para taekwondo practitioner who competes in the F44 classification in the +80 kg category. Bush, who does not have a left hand and forearm, is a two-time champion at the World Para Taekwondo Championships.
Career
[edit]Prior to his para taekwondo career, Bush was a javelin thrower. He had been set to make his Paralympic debut at the 2016 Summer Paralympics but he withdrew due to a shoulder injury.[1] Shortly afterward, he switched to para taekwondo.[2]
At the 2019 World Championships, Bush won the gold medal to become Britain's first world champion in para taewkwondo.[3][4] He was named to the national para taekwondo squad at the rescheduled 2020 Summer Paralympics in 2021 in para taekwondo.[5] However he was forced to withdraw after he had injured his ACL and was replace by his teammate Joe Lane.[6][7] At the 2023 European Para Championships, Bush won the silver medal after losing to Ivan Mikulić in the gold medal match.[8] At the World Championships in September 2023, he won his second gold medal.[9]
Bush competed in the 2024 European Taekwondo Championships, where he won the gold medal in his category.[10] The following month, he was announced as one of three members and the only male of the British para taekwondo team for the 2024 Summer Paralympics.[11] Bush defeated Neutral Paralympic athlete Aliaskhab Ramazanov in the men's K44 +80kg final to claim gold at the 2024 Paralympics Games in Paris, France.[12] He was chosen as one of Great Britain's flagbearers for the closing ceremony alongside swimmer Poppy Maskill.[13]
References
[edit]- ^ "Bush aiming for Paralympic joy at third time of asking". BBC. 18 June 2024.
- ^ "Matt Bush". ParalympicsGB. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
- ^ "Antalya 2019: Day of upsets at taekwondo Worlds". IPC. 6 February 2019.
- ^ "Antalya 2019: History made on final day". IPC. 7 February 2019.
- ^ "ParalympicsGB taekwondo squad named for Tokyo 2020". ParalympicsGB. 26 May 2021.
- ^ "Tokyo Paralympics: World Para-taekwondo champion Matt Bush withdraws injured". BBC. 22 August 2021.
- ^ "Para Taekwondo World champion Matt Bush withdraws from Tokyo 2020 Paralympics". 22 August 2021.
- ^ Berkeley, Geoff (16 August 2023). "Abuzarli snatches taekwondo gold in thrilling finish at European Para Championships".
- ^ "GBR's Bush returns to top form with second Worlds title; Truesdale emerges winner again". World Taekwondo. 24 September 2023.
- ^ "Results – Parataekwondo" (PDF). European Judo Union. 2024. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 August 2024.
- ^ "ParalympicsGB announces Para taekwondo squad for Paris 2024". ParalympicsGB. 18 June 2024.
- ^ "Paris 2024 Paralympics: Amy Truesdale and Matt Bush win back-to-back taekwondo golds". BBC Sport. 31 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
- ^ "Maskill and Bush to be GB's flagbearers". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
- 1988 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Carmarthenshire
- Welsh male taekwondo practitioners
- Paralympic taekwondo practitioners for Great Britain
- Taekwondo practitioners at the 2024 Summer Paralympics
- Medalists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics
- Paralympic gold medalists for Great Britain
- Paralympic medalists in taekwondo