Teen taekwondo talent wins Thailand’s first gold medal

Teenage fighter Watcharakul Limjittrakorn has won Thailand’s maiden gold medal of the 33rd SEA Games, with her impressive victory in the women’s freestyle Poomsae event of the taekwondo competition on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old delivered a graceful performance in front of the home crowd at the Fashion Island shopping mall, scoring 7.900 points to take the title.

The silver and bronze medals went to Nicole Alethea Khaw of Singapore and Phouttavan Chanthakhammany of Laos, respectively.

After adding the SEA Games title to her growing résumé, which already includes a bronze at the 2024 Taekwondo World Championships, Watcharakul has already set her sights on the next goals in her fledgling career.

“Ahead of the competition, I was nervous and felt a bit of pressure, knowing I had a shot at winning the first gold for the country. I tried to stay composed and focused and I think I did that well. My next targets are next year’s Asian Championships and then the World Championships,” said Nano, the niece of People’s Party MP Taopiphop Limjittrakorn.