Koryo Taekwondo Centre owner Sammy Rachele led his athletes into the 2026 ATV Open Poomsae Championships.
Shepparton’s reputation as regional Victoria’s taekwondo capital continues to grow as four youngsters earned gold medals at the 2026 ATV Open Poomsae Championships.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Descending on Melbourne’s Parkville Stadium for the garland event on June 28, the athletes from the Goulburn Valley were accompanied by Koryo Taekwondo Centre head instructor Sammy Rachele for what proved to be another memorable outing.
The Commonwealth Games gold medallist led his proteges into the Dojang at Parkville fresh from a trip to the Gold Coast for a triple-header of competitions between June 18-21.
After a successful foray to Queensland earlier in the month, Rachele’s para fledglings did him proud once more down at Parkville, taking the 2026 ATV Open by storm as they pitted their wits against athletes from across Victoria.
This time around, Rachele clinched two gold medals, while Brendon Leeder also earned two golds, as Brodie Fitzgerald and Alena Nigro both claimed a gold medal each.
In addition, Fitzgerald earned two silvers, with Nigro also coming away with a couple of silver medals on another weekend to remember for the Shepparton contingent.
“Oh yeah, it was a bit of a toss-up whether we’d be able to get this tournament in after the Gold Coast,” Rachele said, reflecting on the experience for the group down in the state capital.
Sammy Rachele led his prodigies into the championships down in Parkville, Melbourne.
“I went along with three of my para athletes and Brendon did great again - he ended up scoring a nine in one of his games, and I haven’t seen a nine come up for a long time.
“So he won one gold in the individual and one in his pairs and Alena won gold in her team event and silver in the pair and the individual and Brodie did the same - so they’ve done really good.
“We don’t have another competition for a month or so now so we’ve got Performance Pathways training coming up in a couple of weeks.”
The next item on Rachele’s agenda is preparing his upcoming prospects for Performance Pathways training and the trainer is relishing the opportunity to ensure country kids gain access to a level playing field in the world of martial arts.
“I mean the opportunities are there but you need to put it out there and you need to push and tell them ‘you’ve got the ability to do really well’,” he said.
“Because I’ve got the experience and done the World Championships in Bahrain in the last few years, I know their competition and their ability.
“I know with the kids I’ve got (at Koryo Taekwondo Centre) that they can absolutely get a podium on the world stage.”
As for leading by example by winning a couple of gold medals himself at the championships, Rachele believes it is important to demonstrate to his para athletes that a route to future success is very much open to them.
“My Grand Master is 85-years-old and he says ‘you’ve got to lead from the front’,” he said.
“It’s no good telling the kids they can get up there and compete if you’re not willing to get on the mat yourself and show them how to do it.
“I love it, I’ve got my tail up now and I don’t plan on getting beat for the rest of the year hopefully!”
Next up, the Koryo Taekwondo Centre founder will compete at the prestigious 2026 World Taekwondo Poomsee Championships in South Korea in September as he looks to add a Worlds gold to his silverware collection.
At the age of 55, there is no stopping the Shepparton athlete in his quest to put his town on the map as a true hotbed of taekwondo talent.
13°C