PRESS RELEASE ETU European Taekwondo Championships Montreux 2016 Montreux, Switzerland May 2016

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1 PRESS RELEASE ETU European Taekwondo Championships Montreux 2016 Montreux, Switzerland May 2016 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS, MONTREUX 2016 = 1 st DAY PREVIEW CATEGORIES: FEMALES -46 & -49 kg / MALES -54, & -58 kg FEMALES - 46 kg * PARTICIPATION: 15 athletes - 15 countries * EUROPEAN WINNERS 2014 (BAKU): 1st place: Hajer Mustapha (FRA), 2nd: Iryna Romoldanova (UKR), 3rd place: Asia Bailey (GBR), Mateja Kunovic (CRO) * HIGHEST POSITION IN WORLD RANKING: Kyriaki Kouttouki (CYP) No-1 * QUALIFICATION FROM WORLD PRESIDENT CUP: Kyriaki Kouttouki (CYP), Dina Pouryounes Langeroudi (ETU), Blanca Palmer Soler (ESP) * MOST MEDALS IN 2016: Maryam Ismaili (BEL) is the athlete with the most medals this year. Ismaili has got five medals, namely: Ukraine Open (gold, -46kg.), Belgian Open (silver, -46kg), Fujairah Open (bronze, -46kg), Slovenia Open (bronze, -46kg), Spanish Open (-46kg ). Participating athletes are those who made the final in 2014 in Baku. The French Hajer Mustapha (Nov-9) and Iryna Romoldanova (Nov-9) from Ukraine. At the highest step of the podium was Mustapha, leaving in second place the Romoldanova, which in January claimed the qualification of the Rio Olympics through the Olympic Qualification tournament but was limited to the 3rd position of -49 kg. In 2015, the World Championships of the Chelyabinsk Romoldanova was second at -46 kilos. In fact she was the only European representative on the podium in that category. The two athletes are among the favorites for the gold medal and the organization of Montreux, while the same list also includes: - Kyriaki Kouttouki (CYP) is No-1 in the World Ranking,

2 - Maryam Ismaili (BEL, Nov-11) - Rukiye Yildirim (TUR, No-64) which among others has in her palmare the two medals in European women (St. Petersburg 2010, gold & Manchester 2012, bronze) - Dina Pouryounes Langeroudi (ETU) which is in the 27th place World Ranking, even winning 14 places in the rankings announced for the month of May. FEMALES - 49 kg * PARTICIPATION: 19 athletes - 16 countries * THE EUROPEAN NIKITRIES 2014 (BAKU): 1st place: Lucija Zaninovic (CRO), 2nd place: Yasmina Aziez (FRA), 3rd place: Ivett Gonda (HUN), Svetlana Igumenova (RUS) * HIGHEST POSITION IN WORLD RANKING: Yasmina Aziez (FRA) No-1 PROKRISEIS FROM WORLD PRESIDENT CUP: Kristina Tomic (CRO), Alexandra Lychagina (RUS), Sasa Damnjanovic (SRB). * MOST MEDALS IN 2016: Christina Tomic (CRO) is the athlete with the most medals this year. Tomic has won four medals, namely: Slovenia Open (-49kg, gold), Ukraine Open (- 49kg, gold), World Presidents Cup (-49kg gold), Turkish Open (-49kg bronze). Lucija Zaninovic (CRO, No.-2) seems to be the absolute favorite for the gold medal. She already counts three gold medals in the last three competitions (St. Petersburg, Manchester, Baku) and in the event of Montreux she will attempt to make them 4 out of 4. Zaninovic, which in August will be present in «Rio 2016», is the only athlete in this class that has a medal in the Olympic Games, namely bronze at London The main opponent to claim the gold medal will be the No.-1 World Ranking, Yasmina Aziez from France. Aziez has also has secured a place for «Rio 2016» (through the Olympic Games Qualification Europe), and has been found twice in the final European Championship, but she both times experienced defeat by Zaninovic resulting to stay in second place, while 2012 in Manchester was also third in the -49kg. Among the other contenders gold medal, four names particularly stand out: - Tijana Bogdanovic (SRB No-8) was third in the World Championships of Chelyabinsk in 2015, second in the European Championships Olympic Categories of Russia in the same year and will also be present at the Rio Olympics due to the second position she took at Olympic games Qualification Europe last January,

3 - Svetlana Igumenova (RUS No-11) in 2015 was found in the third step of the podium in both the World and European Championship, - Erica Nicoli (ITA No-29) last year was third in the European Championships Olympic Categories, while she almost made it to the Rio Olympics, but eventually ranked third in the Qualification Tournament in Istanbul. MALES - 54 kg * PARTICIPATION: 26 athletes - 23 countries * THE WINNERS OF THE 2014 EUROPEAN (BAKU): 1st place: Stepan Dimitrov (MDA), 2nd place: Georgios Simitsis (GRE), 3rd place: Jesus Tortosa Gabreta (ESP), Mehmet Dolas (TUR) * HIGHEST POSITION IN WORLD RANKING: Jack Wolley (IRL) No-4 * QUALIFICATION FROM WORLD PRESIDENT CUP: Majid Sofiyev (AZE), Jorge Canales Torres (ESP), Jesus Tortosa Cabrera (ESP), Stanislav Denisov (RUS), Ovidiu Trifan (ROU). * MOST MEDALS IN 2016:Jack Woolley (IRL) has celebrated five medals, most recently the bronze in German Open. Earlier this year he was second in the US Open, second in Fujairah Open and the Spanish Open, and participated in the Olympic Games Qualification Europe but was limited to third place and the bronze medal thus excluded from the Rio Olympics. It's among the categories where the prediction for the athlete who will win the gold medal is rather risky. Seemingly, closer to the gold are the Jesus Tortosa Cabrera (ESP), Giorgos Simitsis (GRE), Stanislav Denisov (RUS), Jack Wolley (IRL) and Mourad Laachraoui (BEL). The Spanish athlete (No-8) was third in the last European Championship, but earlier this year and through the Olympic Games Qualification Europe, he managed to win the silver medal and ensure qualification for «Rio 2016» in the category of -58kg which gives him the lead and in the chase for the gold medal. Simitsis (No-15), in 2014 last European Championship was second, while in 2016 has won a gold medal (Slovenia Open, -58kg) and a bronze (Belgian Open, -54kg).

4 The third of the favorites, Russian Denisov (No-6) won the bronze medal at last year's World Championships in Chelyabinsk, and already counts three bronze medals this year at Dutch Open, Belgian Open and World Presidents Cup, all in the category of -54kg. Wolley, the athlete who is in 4th place of the World Rankings, claimed the qualification for the Rio Olympics but was eliminated after the defeat by Ron Atias (ISR) with a score of in the semifinals. However, from this organization he took the bronze medal, while in his palmare he has four more in Recently he was third in the German Open, while earlier he was second in the US Open, second in Fujairah Open and the Spanish Open. Laachraoui is very combative and has got very high expectations for gold in Montreux. Being No-5 in the world rankings, he has four medals this year, with major being the gold at the US Open in Luxor Open. Also he was third in Canadian Open and Fujairah Open. MALES - 58 kg * PARTICIPATION: 30 athletes - 28 countries * WINNERS OF THE 2014 EUROPEAN (BAKU): 1st place: Rui Braganca (POR), 2nd place: Levent Tuncat (GER), 3rd place: Dylan Chellamootoo, Ruslan Poiseyev (RUS) * HIGHEST POSITION IN WORLD RANKING: Rui Braganca (POR) No-2 * QUALIFICATION FROM WORLD PRESIDENT CUP: Salaheddine Bensaleh (BEL), Shalva Shubitidze (RUS), Milos Gladovic (SRB) * MOST MEDALS IN 2016: Milos Gladovic (SRB) may not be able to qualify for the Rio Olympics, he ranked third in the Olympic Games Qualification Europe (-58kg), but this year has already been found four times on the podium. He was first in the Dutch Open, World Presidents Cup, second in Slovenia Open and Belgian Open. Four athletes out of the five that are in the lead for the gold medal, have already secured qualification for the Rio Olympics. These are Rui Braganca (POR), Levent Tuncat (GER), Si Mohamed Ketbi (BEL) and Ron Atias (ISR). Braganca, No.-2 in the World Ranking, is the title holder in this category in the event of Baku in In his resume, among others, he has a gold medal in the European Championships Olympic Categories held last year in Baku.

5 Tuncat, currently is No.-3 in the world ranking. In Montreux he will claim his fourth gold medal at the European Championships and fifth overall since last year in Baku he was second. Ketbi hasn't won a medal at the Men's European Championship, however, last year in Chelyabinsk he was second in -58 kg. Being at No-6 of the World Rankings, through which he gets to qualify for Rio Atias (ISR, No-80) in the final of the Olympic Games Qualification Europe topped the category of -58 kg (in the final defeating Jesus Tortosa of Spain by 3-2) and ensured his qualification for Rio. Aparr from the above, favorites for the gold medal are: - Ruslan Poiseev (RUS, No-18) third in both the European 2014 (Baku), and the World Championship 2015 (Chelyabinsk) - Milos Gladovic (ISR, No-5) has the most medals this year, most recently in the World Presidents Cup when he won the final by 6-5 against Salaheddine Bensaleh (BEL, No-13) also among the favorites for the first place. The program of the first day: 08:30-14:00 Preliminary Round - Quarterfinals Semifinals 17:00-18:30 Finals - Medal Ceremonies 19:00 Opening Ceremony