Taekwondo teenager becomes Britain’s first ever gold winner
TEENAGE sensation Jade Jones became Britain’s first ever taekwondo gold medallist after defeating Yuzhuo Huo of China 6-4 in a spectacular -57kg final at the ExCeL Arena.
The Welsh 19-year-old went into the final round of the bout 2-0 ahead before a furious flurry of hits increased her lead to 6-1 and she held off a late surge from Yuzhuo to claim Britain’s 25th gold of the Games following a result with which she was delighted.
“I still doesn’t feel real, it feels crazy,” said Jones. “I’ve dreamt about this for ages, and the crowd have just been amazing. This can’t be beaten.
“My coach [Paul Green] is a legend and without him I wouldn’t have been anywhere near where I was today. When I came out I just wanted to go on and win.
“Before I came out I was thinking that she [Hup] took my World Championship final. That killed me for ages. So I wasn’t going to let her beat me here in front of a home crowd.”
Compatriot Martin Stamper narrowly missed out on a bronze in the men’s under -68kg, losing 5-3 to Rohullah Nikpah of Afghanistan.