World Taekwondo has asked its Technical Committee to look into updating its Competition Rules to guard against illegitimate withdrawals from competitions following a complaint by UKLFI .

UKLFI’s complaint to World Taekwondo came after a Jordanian Taekwondo competitor, Maysir Al-Dahamsheh, refused to compete against an Israeli player during  the 2022 World Taekwondo Cadet Championships, on 31 July in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Al-Dahamsheh‘s withdrawal was widely praised in certain Arab media and was characterised as part of a boycott of Israeli competitors.

Corbin Min, Legal Counsel for World Taekwondo told UKLFI that they had conducted an enquiry into the events during the competition in Sofia, including discussions with onsite competition management officials and Jordanian representatives.

Mr Min said: “Based on the evidence, the Jordanian coach reported an injury as the basis for withdrawing from the match, which falls within WT rules and is not uncommon, especially at this level of competition. Therefore, WT does not see the foundation on which to move forward with more formal procedures.”

However, Mr Min continued: “As a result of this review, we have asked our Technical Committee to look into how to update our Competition Rules in order to better guard against possible illegitimate withdrawals from competitions.”

UKLFI Director Sam Green commented:   “The sporting world needs to recognise it is faced with a concerted campaign to delegitimise any sporting contact with Israel. Only by being vigilant to it and uniting to face the undermining of sporting rules and ideals can it be seen off. UKLFI welcomes World Taekwando’s commitment to close loopholes and make it ever more difficult for rule-breakers to succeed in their aims.”