More than 1,300 athletes from 52 countries competed in the eighth Taekwon-Do World Cup in Koper, Slovenia ©ITF

More than 1,300 athletes from 52 countries competed in the eighth Taekwon-Do World Cup in Koper, Slovenia.

Originally scheduled for 2020, this flagship International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) competition, which took place two years further on the historic city on the Adriatic Coast, was hailed as an "exceptional event."

The World Cup 2022 was officially opened by ITF President Paul Weiler in the Bonifika Arena in the presence of Slovenian officials including the President of the Slovenian National Olympic Committee, Bogdan Gabrovec, and the Mayor of the city of Koper, Aleš Bržan.

After the official opening there was an emotional certificate ceremony for the first Honourable Grand Master title in ITF history, awarded to the ITF icon Thomas MacCallum.

The ceremony closed with a series of demonstration events.

Over the next five days all the disciplines of ITF competition were shown on eight parallel rings, ranging from individual and team pattern and sparring to power breaking and special technique as well as pre-arranged sparring.

More than 1,300 athletes from 52 countries competed in the eighth Taekwon-Do World Cup in Koper, Slovenia ©ITF
More than 1,300 athletes from 52 countries competed in the eighth Taekwon-Do World Cup in Koper, Slovenia ©ITF

Poland topped the overall medal table with a tally of 65 medals, featuring 27 golds, 18 silvers and 20 bronzes.

Ukraine finished second in the medal table with a total of 69, consisting of 27 golds, 13 silvers and 29 bronzes.

Argentina placed third in the overall medal table with 90, featuring 21 golds, 23 silvers and 46 bronzes.

The World Cup is a tournament open to schools and all black belts as well as blue and red belts.

More than 100 umpires on and off the mats ensured a safe and fair competition.

In addition, this was the first world event organised by the ITF which had a concussion officer in addition to the medical team, to oversee the implementation of the revised ITF Concussion Policy to protect the competitors.

On the last day, the joint organising team put on a spectacular gala that included male team sparring, which was won by the Ukrainian team.

The International Taekwon-Do Federation - a separate organisation to World Taekwondo, which is the sole governing entity of the sport in the Olympic and Paralympic Games - has more than 120 affiliated member federations on six continents and an estimated one million practitioners.