Olympic Taekwondo Athlete Kicks Ref in Face
ABC News brings us a tale of amazingly bad sportsmanship. Cuba’s Angel Matos and his coach Leudis Gonzalez are banned from the Olympic games for life after Matos kicked a referee in the face. Yes, you read me right: an Olympic martial arts expert kicked a defenseless ref in the head.
Matos was reportedly upset about being disqualified in his bronze medal match. Matos was defeating Kazakhstan’s Arman Chilmanov 3-2, with 1:02 in the second round, when Matos fell to the mat. While awaiting medical attention, he was disqualified for taking too much injury time. Fighters get only one minute. That does sting, especially if it’s not his fault he didn’t get the attention in time. But attacking the referee belongs in the world of professional wrestling, not in Olympic Taekwondo.Gonzalez didn’t offer any apology for his athlete’s bizarre behavior and accused referee Chakir Chelbat of Sweden of taking money from the Kazahks.
Matos and Gonzalez are banned for life from all championships sanctioned by the World Taekwondo Federation and all Matos’ records of competition are erased from the Olympic books. I thought the martial arts were supposed to teach discipline and restraint. What dojo do these guys belong to, Cobra Kai?
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