The sons and daughters of Samoa returned home with 15 medals from the two-day Kukkiwon Cup 2023 (Taekwondo New Zealand National Championships) last weekend.

The Tuiaopo Investments KLAS Taekwondo team from Samoa comprised 17 competitors with the majority of them making their debut in an international competition last weekend. The tournament was a success for KLAS Taekwondo, according to a statement released by the club. It was obvious on the mat that the kids had been preparing for months for the NZ Nationals.

The head coach and Samoan Olympian and Pacific Games gold medallist, Leuluaitumua Tapunuu Kaino Thomsen-Fuataga said that though the competition was tough, his students stepped up under pressure.

He said his highlight from the tournament was seeing his team's athletes compete well and win against more experienced opponents who had higher belts. 

"Coming from a country with limited sparring partners and competitions to then competing in a high-level tournament against high-level players is a feat in itself and a testament that there is so much potential with athletes in Samoa in the sport of Taekwondo," said Tapunuu. "The medals did not do justice knowing this perspective. To me, everyone deserved to win. It was just a small marginal difference.

“The level of competition was what we expected as it was also the NZ National selections for Pacific Games and Oceania at the end of the year. High level and also tough, exactly what we needed for our young athletes and National team members.

"A great experience for the young ones and also the National team members as for most of them this is their first international tournament. Some of the athletes did not have a proper sparring partner in Samoa so this is the first time they had competed fully against someone in their weight class. In knowing that, they did exceptionally well. This is definitely the first of many.

"Tuiaopo Investments KLAS Taekwondo is in a unique position, being the only active club in Samoa, but it does come with its challenges. Over the years KLAS Taekwondo have had to pivot with the lack of local competition within Samoa. Forcing the club to host two in-house tournaments which were held last year in November and at the Samoa Games in May this year."

According to Tapunuu, this was a great exercise for KLAS students to train, create morale and build a team spirit. But at the end of the day, there still needs to be more high-level competition for KLAS students to excel. For this reason, he said the opportunity to travel and compete overseas was a necessary one.

“Realistically we need more tournaments like this to excel and to dominate. It's the process that gets us the results and medals that we want," he said. "Sticking to it requires a lot of hard work and also funding. 

"We hope and look forward to the next possible tournament so that we continue to raise our flag high amongst the best of them. We will be back. Next time we will not just look to participate but to dominate.”

Tapunuu added that flying 17 students, housing them and feeding them did not come cheaply. On top of fundraising, the club has been fortunate to receive funding from various sponsors and donors to help make this a successful tournament for the young athletes.

“All in all, I am very happy with the results. Sport is a long-term thing. We get the results of the time, money and effort we put in. We appreciate and thank all the help and support from our sponsors and also our families locally and abroad who have been tremendous throughout this journey. 

"We thank the Lord above for his guidance, protection and provision for our team as we travelled on the roads and in the air. All the glory goes back to him. For the students, so much value was gained through the experience and knowledge while in NZ for the Taekwondo Tournament."

Silver medalist Niko Vaitupu also shared his New Zealand experience saying they wanted to make the best of the opportunity by fighting in New Zealand. 

“I’ve learnt so much being here and competing in this tournament. We trained so hard for this and winning a medal was such a great feeling. All we need is more of this type of experience to perform at a higher level and improve. We don’t have much back home but we make the most of what we have.”

Dante Senio, who also received a silver medal at the NZ tournament, looked back at the experience and spoke of how it pushed them to go further. 

“Knowing that we can battle it out with these athletes who had way more experience than us just fuels the fire to go further. We now also have a better understanding of what our Master (Kaino Thomsen) has been teaching and telling us about," he said. 

"All the drills and technical aspects of the game and the mindset required for it. We thank him for preparing us well to compete in this Kukkiwon Cup NZ tournament.”

• The final results from the NZ tournament.