Korea tops Muju 2026 Grand Prix as Seif Eissa claims long-awaited gold
The Muju Taekwondowon 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix concluded on September 7 after three days of elite competition at one of the sport’s most iconic venues.
Host nation Korea closed the Muju Taekwondowon 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix with two victories on the final day and three titles overall, while Egypt’s Seif Eissa defeated Olympic champion Vladislav Larin to capture the first Grand Prix gold of his career.
Korea dominated the final session through Jinho Mun in the men’s -68kg and Da Bin Song in the women’s +67kg. Egypt’s Seif Eissa completed the program with an emotional victory in the men’s +80kg division.
The results gave the host nation three of the eight titles contested in Muju. China finished with two gold medals, while Brazil, Belarus and Egypt each claimed one.
Jinho Mun controls the men’s -68kg final
Jinho Mun delivered Korea’s first gold medal of the day with a commanding performance against Croatia’s Marko Golubić, the 2023 world champion in the -74kg category.
Mun controlled the final from the opening seconds, taking the first round 7-0 before sealing the championship with a 13-7 victory in the second.
The Korean athlete had previously completed a comeback against Russia’s Amir Vykov, silver medallist at the Rome Grand Prix, in the semi-finals. Golubić reached the final after defeating the United States’ Maikol Rodriguez, a bronze medallist at the Wuxi 2025 World Taekwondo Championships.
Mun’s success followed his gold medal at the 2025 World Taekwondo Grand Prix Challenge in Bangkok.
Men’s -68kg
- Gold: Jinho Mun — Korea
- Silver: Marko Golubić — Croatia
- Bronze: Amir Vykov — Russia
- Bronze: Maikol Rodriguez — United States
Da Bin Song turns the final around
Da Bin Song secured Korea’s second title of the day after a dramatic comeback against Russia’s Anastasiia Kosmycheva in the women’s +67kg final.
The match repeated the gold-medal contest from the 2025 Grand Prix Challenge in Muju, where Kosmycheva had prevailed.
The Russian athlete took the opening round 9-7, but Song responded with an 11-10 victory in the second. With the decisive round still close, the Korean connected with a crucial head kick inside the final 10 seconds and completed a 12-7 win to earn her first Grand Prix gold.
Song received a walkover in the semi-finals due to an injury suffered by Côte d’Ivoire’s Kimi Laurène Ossin, winner of the Rome 2026 Grand Prix. Earlier in the tournament, the Korean had eliminated two-time world champion Luana Márton of Hungary.
Kosmycheva advanced through the opposite side of the draw after defeating Belgium’s Sarah Chaâri, the reigning -73kg world champion and 2025 World Taekwondo Athlete of the Year.
Women’s +67kg
- Gold: Da Bin Song — Korea
- Silver: Anastasiia Kosmycheva — Russia
- Bronze: Kimi Laurène Ossin — Côte d’Ivoire
- Bronze: Sarah Chaâri — Belgium
Seif Eissa finally reaches the top
The championship ended with a landmark victory for Egypt’s Seif Eissa in the men’s +80kg category.
Eissa arrived in Muju as the reigning -87kg world champion and an eight-time Grand Prix medallist, but he had never previously reached the top of the podium at this level.
That wait ended with a two-round victory over Russia’s Vladislav Larin, a former Olympic and world champion.
The Egyptian edged a 2-2 opening round through the tiebreak criteria. He then established an advantage in the second before two late Gam-jeom penalties against Larin reduced the final score to 4-4, which was still enough to secure the title.
Eissa had recovered from losing the first round of his semi-final against Greece’s Vasíleios Tholiotis. Larin advanced after defeating Iran’s reigning Olympic champion Arian Salimi.
Men’s +80kg
- Gold: Seif Eissa — Egypt
- Silver: Vladislav Larin — Russia
- Bronze: Vasíleios Tholiotis — Greece
- Bronze: Arian Salimi — Iran
Korea finishes first with three titles
The host nation completed the Grand Prix with three gold medals. Jun Seo Bae opened Korea’s account in the men’s -58kg before Mun and Song added two victories on the closing day.
China earned two championships through Xiaolu Fu in the women’s -49kg and Jiani Xing in the women’s -67kg.
Brazil’s Maria Clara Pacheco continued her dominance of the women’s -57kg category, Raman Turavinau delivered Belarus’ first World Taekwondo Grand Prix title in the men’s -80kg and Eissa secured Egypt’s only gold in the final contest.
Muju 2026 Grand Prix champions
- Women’s -49kg: Xiaolu Fu — China
- Men’s -58kg: Jun Seo Bae — Korea
- Women’s -57kg: Maria Clara Pacheco — Brazil
- Men’s -80kg: Raman Turavinau — Belarus
- Women’s -67kg: Jiani Xing — China
- Men’s -68kg: Jinho Mun — Korea
- Women’s +67kg: Da Bin Song — Korea
- Men’s +80kg: Seif Eissa — Egypt
Following the conclusion of the competition, Australia’s Nichola White received the Best Female Referee award, while Leslie Cheung of the United States was recognized as Best Male Referee.
The 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series will continue in Paris, France. The World Para Taekwondo Grand Prix will take place on October 8, followed by the third Grand Prix stop from October 9 to 11.
Source: World Taekwondo
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