Yaowapa Boorapolchai
Encyclopedia
Yaowapa Boorapolchai (Thai
: เยาวภา บุรพลชัย; born September 6, 1984) is a Thai taekwondo
athlete who was the bronze medalist in the women's under 49 kg event at the 2004 Summer Olympics
.
She started competing in 2002. In the first round of the Women's Under 49 kg event she defeated Brigitte Yague of Spain
, and in the quarterfinal was defeated by Yanelis Yuliet Labrada Diaz
of Cuba
. She defeated Ivett Gonda
of Canada
and Gladys Alicia Mora Romero of Colombia
in the repechage tournament to win the bronze and become the first Thai Olympic medalist outside of boxing
and weightlifting.
She won a bronze medal in the Universiade, World Taekwondo Championships, and World Taekwondo Olympic Qualification Tournament in 2003, and a gold in the South East Asian Games in the same year.
Many Thais claim that Yaowapa, one of the most popular athletes among Thais, has frequently been victimized by wayward officiating. Besides her loss to Diaz in Athens, she also lost to Lim Su-Jeong
, a Korean exponent, in a gold-medal match at the 2002 Asian Games
in Busan, South Korea, and was defeated in the first round at the 2005 South East Asian Games in the Philippines
by Loraine Lorelie Catalan, a Filipino exponent. Thai officials have claimed she was cheated by the judges in these matches, especially the matches involving exponents from the host nation.
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
: เยาวภา บุรพลชัย; born September 6, 1984) is a Thai taekwondo
Taekwondo
Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea. In Korean, tae means "to strike or break with foot"; kwon means "to strike or break with fist"; and do means "way", "method", or "path"...
athlete who was the bronze medalist in the women's under 49 kg event at the 2004 Summer Olympics
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
.
She started competing in 2002. In the first round of the Women's Under 49 kg event she defeated Brigitte Yague of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and in the quarterfinal was defeated by Yanelis Yuliet Labrada Diaz
Yanelis Yuliet Labrada Diaz
Yanelis Yuliet Labrada Diaz is a taekwondo silver medalist from Cuba in the Women's Under 49 kg event at the 2004 Summer Olympics....
of Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. She defeated Ivett Gonda
Ivett Gonda
-Awards:*Named Most Valuable Player at the 2002 Junior National Championships and the 2006 Senior National Championships-References:*http://www.combatcanada.ca/forum/index.php?topic=27.0*http://www.olympic.ca/EN/hopefuls/2007/taekwondo.html...
of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Gladys Alicia Mora Romero of Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
in the repechage tournament to win the bronze and become the first Thai Olympic medalist outside of boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
and weightlifting.
She won a bronze medal in the Universiade, World Taekwondo Championships, and World Taekwondo Olympic Qualification Tournament in 2003, and a gold in the South East Asian Games in the same year.
Many Thais claim that Yaowapa, one of the most popular athletes among Thais, has frequently been victimized by wayward officiating. Besides her loss to Diaz in Athens, she also lost to Lim Su-Jeong
Lim Su-Jeong
Lim Su-jeong is a female South Korean taekwondo practitioner.- Asian Games :At the age of 16, she won the gold medal in flyweight at the 2002 Asian Games, beating 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Yaowapa Boorapolchai of Thailand in the final.In 2007, Lim won the gold medal in featherweight at the...
, a Korean exponent, in a gold-medal match at the 2002 Asian Games
Asian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
in Busan, South Korea, and was defeated in the first round at the 2005 South East Asian Games in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
by Loraine Lorelie Catalan, a Filipino exponent. Thai officials have claimed she was cheated by the judges in these matches, especially the matches involving exponents from the host nation.