China and Brazil win final titles as Paris-Levallois 2026 concludes

PARIS-LEVALLOIS, France — China’s Jingyue Ma and Brazil’s Henrique Marques Rodrigues Fernandes won the last two gold medals at the Paris 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix on October 11, bringing three days of Kyorugi competition to a close at the Palais des Sports Marcel Cerdan, in Levallois-Perret.

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Jingyue Ma and Henrique Marques Rodrigues Fernandes claimed their first Grand Prix titles on the final day. Brazil and Iran finished with two Kyorugi gold medals each, while six nations shared the eight titles contested in Paris-Levallois.

Ma defeated Korea’s Hyang Gi Kim in the women’s −49 kg final, while Rodrigues Fernandes overcame Uzbekistan’s Jasurbek Jaysunov to take men’s −80 kg gold. Both athletes celebrated their first Grand Prix titles.

The event began on October 8 with the World Para Taekwondo Grand Prix, where seven nations shared the ten titles and Bahrain earned its first-ever medal at a World Para Taekwondo event.

The opening Kyorugi day brought two titles for Iran and Lauren Williams’ return to Grand Prix gold. On the second day, Brazil, Korea and Hungary topped the podiums through Maria Clara Pacheco, Jinho Mun and Viviana Márton.

Ma wins a three-round final for her first Grand Prix gold

China’s Jingyue Ma converted her bronze in Muju into gold in Paris, defeating Korea’s Hyang Gi Kim 2–1 in the women’s −49 kg final.

Kim took the opening round after a 2–2 tie, before Ma won the second following a 4–4 finish to force a decider.

The Chinese athlete landed a head kick early in the third round to establish a 3–0 lead. Kim pressed forward, but Ma protected her advantage to secure the title.

Ma reached the final with a 2–0 semifinal victory over Chinese Taipei’s Chieh-ling Wang. The two-time junior world champion earned her first Grand Prix medal with bronze, having eliminated Russia’s Rome champion Alisa Angelova in the quarterfinals.

Kim advanced through a three-round semifinal against Hungary’s European champion Kamilah Salim, who claimed the other bronze.

Rodrigues Fernandes completes his medal collection with gold

Brazil’s Henrique Marques Rodrigues Fernandes, the reigning world champion and 2025 World Taekwondo Male Athlete of the Year, defeated Uzbekistan’s Jasurbek Jaysunov 2–0 in the men’s −80 kg final.

The victory completed his collection of medals across this year’s Grand Prix Series, following silver in Rome and bronze in Muju.

Jaysunov built a 9–2 lead in the opening round through a series of head kicks. The Brazilian responded with two head kicks of his own to reduce the deficit to 9–8, before a late penalty against Jaysunov helped Rodrigues Fernandes take the round 10–9.

In the second, Rodrigues Fernandes moved ahead 4–2 and held off the Uzbek’s challenge to secure gold.

The Brazilian reached the final by defeating the United States’ Victor Rodrigues in two rounds. Rodrigues earned his first Grand Prix medal with bronze after beating Serbia’s reigning −74 kg European champion Stefan Takov in the quarterfinals.

Morocco’s Haitam Zarhouti also celebrated his first Grand Prix medal. His run included a victory over Belarus’ Muju champion Raman Turavinau before Jaysunov defeated him 8–6 and 3–2 in the semifinals.

All medallists — Paris-Levallois 2026, Kyorugi Day 3

Women’s −49 kg

  • 🥇 Jingyue Ma — China.
  • 🥈 Hyang Gi Kim — Korea.
  • 🥉 Chieh-ling Wang — Chinese Taipei.
  • 🥉 Kamilah Salim — Hungary.

Men’s −80 kg

  • 🥇 Henrique Marques Rodrigues Fernandes — Brazil.
  • 🥈 Jasurbek Jaysunov — Uzbekistan.
  • 🥉 Victor Rodrigues — United States.
  • 🥉 Haitam Zarhouti — Morocco.

Brazil and Iran finish with two titles each

Brazil and Iran each won two of the eight Kyorugi titles contested in Paris-Levallois. Maria Clara Pacheco and Rodrigues Fernandes delivered Brazil’s gold medals, while Abolfazl Zandi and Arian Salimi secured Iran’s victories.

Great Britain, Korea, Hungary and China claimed one title apiece through Lauren Williams, Jinho Mun, Viviana Márton and Jingyue Ma, respectively.

Following the competition, the Philippines’ Floramie Navales received the Best Female Referee award, while Brazil’s Felipe Saula De Moraes was named Best Male Referee.

Astana hosts the Grand Prix Finals in November

The Astana 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix Final is scheduled for November 28–29 in Kazakhstan, following the World Para Taekwondo Grand Prix Final on November 27.

MASTKD’s coverage from Paris-Levallois continues with images and exclusive interviews from the event.

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