The Jamaica Star :: Sport :: Golden boy Dussard gets high praise from coach

Nicholas Dussard ... won historic tae kwon do gold at Pan-Am Champs - Contributed

CLAUDE Chin, Jamaica's senior coach at the International Taekwondo Federation's (ITF) eighth Pan-Am Championships in Florianopolis, Santa Catrina, Brazil, yesterday heaped praises on Nicholas Dussard after the teenager's historic gold-medal performance.

Dussard, the 18-year-old Wolmer's Boys student, last Saturday created local martial arts history by winning Jamaica's first ever ITF senior gold-medal by taking the lightweight title.

Chin said hard work paid off for Dussard, who also won the International Sports Karate Association United States Open black belt junior title in Orlando last July.

"I would have been greatly disappointed if he had not won gold," said Chin. "We did everything according to plan."

No doubt

Dussard, who now boasts two ITF Pan-Am gold medals, having won his first as a junior in Paraguay in 2004, went through four gruelling bouts, facing opponents from Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Paraguay before defeating a Brazilian rival in the final.

Chin said he expects Dussard to stamp his class at upcoming ITF events such as the World Cup.

"I have no doubt, come October, in Italy, he will be the World Cup champion as well," said Chin, pointing out that Dussard could have easily won an ITF world junior gold medal last July in Quebec, Canada, but was pulled from the squad to concentrate on external examinations in his final year as a junior.

Fair fight

Captain of Jamaica's combined martial arts team, Jason McKay, said Dussard's victory stunned the packed auditorium.

McKay said Dussard's win, in his first attempt at an ITF senior tournament, was also due to the historic use of electronic points recording system at the Pan-Am Championships.

The combined team captain, who has always hit out against the officiating at international tournaments, said the new system was instrumental in ensuring a fair fight for the underdog Dussard, and vindicated his arguments about faulty scoring.

Dussard, who was awarded the Prime Minister's Youth Award for excellence in sports three years ago, was elated at his achievement.

"I am ecstatic," said the teen. "It represents my greatest achievement to date in my career, to win an adult black belt gold medal, an ITF gold, the one which many greats before me were unable to achieve."