Romany Gypsy Chris Royles wins bronze at World Taekwondo Championships

DAMIAN LE BAS

Editor

Above: Chris Royles proudly sporting his bronze medal. Photograph: © Chris Royles

ROMANY GYPSY Chris Royles from Hereford numbers among the top Taekwondo competitors in the world after winning a bronze medal at last month's World Taekwondo Championships.

The Championships featured over 3,000 competitors and were the biggest single Taekwondo event in history.

Royles, who trains at Hall Family Taekwondo in Hereford, is proud to excel in a sport in which- while undoubtedly physical- it might surprise some people to see a Gypsy flying high.

"We all know the stereotype Gypsies face with bare knuckle fighting, and I feel an image of a Gypsy achieving success in Martial Arts sends out a good message", says Royles.

Taekwondo originates in Korea, and combines elements from the martial arts Taekkyeon and Okinawan Karate. It has been an official Olympic sport since the year 2000.