July 26, 2021 - Croatia's Toni Kanaet wins the taekwondo bronze in Tokyo!

Croatian taekwondo fighter Toni Kanaet (25) won the bronze medal at the Olympic Games, defeating Uzbek fighter Nikita Rafalovich 24-18 in the category of up to 80 kilograms!

After a tied first round that ended 6-6, Kanaet gained a 15-8 advantage in the second. Rafalovich reduced the lead to 15-10 with two punches at the beginning of the third round, and when Rafalovich went for all or nothing, Kanaet punished him with two punches and one to the head to secure the victory.

In the first part of the competition, Kanaet defeated Spain's Raul Martinez Garcia 21-15, only to lose in the quarterfinals to the later Russian finalist Maxim Hramchev with a break after the second round.

By passing Hramchev to the final, Kanaet got the opportunity to fight for the bronze through a rematch. He first overpowered Burkina Faso Faysala Sawadoga with a break at the start of the third round due to too large a difference in points. At the time of the break, it was 30-10 for Kanaet.

This is the first men's Olympic medal for Croatia in taekwondo!

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Croatian Taekwondo National Team member Iva Radoš is second in the world in the up to 73 kilo category after defeating the Olympic winner and taking gold at the Slovenia Open

Vedran Golec won the gold in the heaviest category, above 87 kg, while in total team ranking Jastreb from Zagreb won a silver medal and Marjan from Split a bronze