Israel’s Avishag Semberg loses 2-1 to Saudi competitor in women’s taekwondo

Israeli taekwondo athlete Avishag Semberg loses 2-1 to Saudi Arabia’s Dunya Abutaleb in the women’s under-49kg weight class round of 16 match at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Semberg, who won a bronze at the Tokyo Games, could potentially still compete in a repechage round if Abutaleb advances to the final match.

Abutaleb — the first Saudi woman ever to earn a direct qualification for the Olympics — is a longshot to make it to the final.

Earlier, Palestinian taekwondo athlete Omar Yaser Ismail beat his opponent, Hadi Tiranvalipour, an Iranian native playing for the Refugee Olympic team, in the qualification round of the men’s under-58kg weight class.

Yaser Ismail, born and raised in the UAE to Palestinian parents, is the only athlete among the Palestinians’ eight-member Olympic delegation who directly qualified for the Games.