Skylar Park, 24, is a Canadian taekwondo athlete. She is the current Pan American Games champion after winning bronze at the 2019 World Taekwondo Championships and gold in Santiago at the 2023 Pan American Games.
In the women’s 57 kg weight class at the 2018 Pan American Taekwondo Championships, Park also took home the gold medal. She competed for Canada in the women’s 57 kg weight division at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She is also qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Skylar Park qualified for the Paris Olympics 2024
Skylar Park secured a spot to compete in taekwondo at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She did this by earning high rankings in the World Taekwondo Olympic Rankings for her weight class. Being one of the top-ranked athletes in her weight division granted her a quota place, which means she qualified for the Paris Olympics.
At the Pan American Games in Santiago, Skylar Park won the gold medal in the Women’s 57kg weight category event. In the final gold medal match against Maria Clara Pacheco from Brazil, the score was tied 15-15 going into the third and deciding round. However, Pacheco had received three penalty deductions, while Park had only one. Because of this penalty difference, Skylar Park was awarded the gold medal.
Skylar Park’s successful performances and achievements at major international competitions like the Pan American Games in Santiago also helped her earn valuable ranking points. These points from Santiago and other events contributed to her high ranking.
Skylar Park Family life with her Parents and Siblings
Skylar Mi-Young Zanetel Park was born on June 6, 1999, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She stands at 5 feet 10 inches (178 cm) and weighs 126 pounds (57 kg). She trains at the TRP Academy and is coached by Jae Park.
Skylar’s father, Jae, is from Korea, and her mother, Andrea, who is also called Master Andy, was born in Chile and has Italian family roots. Andrea was Skylar’s first taekwondo coach. The Park family has 16 members who have earned black belts in taekwondo. Skylar’s grandparents, father, aunts, cousins, and brothers all practiced the sport.
Skylar’s brother, Tae-Ku Park, was born on March 27, 2001. At the 2023 Pan American Games, where Skylar won the gold medal, Tae-Ku won a bronze medal. They became the first siblings in taekwondo to win medals at the same Pan American Games.
Skylar Park Started her career at the tender age
Skylar began practicing taekwondo at the young age of 2. As a little child, she started training in taekwondo and earned her black belt by the age of 7 at her parents’ taekwondo school in Winnipeg.
In 2016, Skylar had her big breakthrough in taekwondo when she won the gold medal at the 2016 World Taekwondo Junior Championships held in Burnaby, Canada. This was a home tournament for her. After her great performance, the World Taekwondo organization wrote an article calling her a “Star of Tomorrow.”
In 2018, Park also won the gold medal in the women’s 57 kg weight class at the 2018 Pan American Taekwondo Championships.
In 2019, Park won her first major medal at the top level when she took the bronze medal at the 2019 World Championships. She lost in the semi-finals to Jade Jones, preventing her from competing for gold.
In 2020, Skylar represented Canada at the 2020 Summer Olympics in the women’s 57 kg weight division. Many expected Park to win a medal at these Olympics, but she suffered a disappointing loss in the quarterfinals, ending her hopes of winning a medal.
Skylar Park’s Recent Years and Professional Career
In 2022, Skylar competed in the featherweight division at the 2022 World Taekwondo Championships held in Guadalajara, Mexico. Unfortunately, she lost early in the round of 16.
In 2023, she again competed in the featherweight event at the 2023 World Taekwondo Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan. Like the previous year, she was eliminated in the round of 16 by Maria Clara Pachecho from Brazil. However, Park had a big achievement when she won her first Grand Prix title by defeating the world champion Nahid Kiani at the 2023 World Grand Prix event in Taiyuan, China.
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Skylar started a winning streak when she took the gold medal at the Pan American President’s Cup in September as preparation for the 2023 Pan American Games. At those Pan Am Games, Park continued her streak by winning her third tournament in a row. She captured the gold medal by defeating Maria Clara Pachecho of Brazil, the same opponent who had beaten her earlier that year at the world championships.
