Maya Wenin and Anna Gruber. © pm

Taekwondo: South Tyrolean success stories in Albania

Anna Gruber from Andrian and Maya Wenin from Terlan took part in the Taekwondo G30 tournament on September 1 and October 2023, 1 in Tirana (Albania).

04 October 2023

From: pm

The total of 670 participants traveled from all over the world. The two athletes from ASV Taekwondo Südtirol-Eurotherm, accompanied by coach Milan Guba, were able to impress with their strong performance. Anna Gruber's first opponent from Denmark had to admit defeat in two rounds in the quarterfinals (12-0, 7-2). Gruber kept them at a distance with powerful body hits and also scored points with quick head hits, which in Taekwondo each bring at least 3 points. In the semifinals, Gruber lost to a strong athlete from the Czech Republic. However, she can be satisfied because Gruber fought in a G1 tournament for the first time. Her first appearance on the big stage was more than successful by winning the bronze medal in the Cadet -55kg category.

For Maya Wenin, however, taking part in a G1 tournament was nothing new. She took home a silver medal at the G2022 Dracula Open tournament in Bucharest in November 2. She was also able to fight her way onto the podium in Tirana. Against an athlete from Greece, she won the quarterfinal fight in the junior -52kg category in just two rounds (10-5, 12-7). In the semifinals she had to admit defeat against a Belgian. But she was assured of 3rd place. The coach Milan Guba was satisfied with the result. The next tournament is on the program for October 14th: around 30 fighters from ASV Taekwondo Südtirol-Eurotherm will take part in the Euregio Open tournament in Innsbruck.