Alasan Ann
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American-Gambian |
| Born | September 29, 2000 Maple Grove, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Gambia |
| Sport | Taekwondo |
| Weight class | 80 kg+ |
Alasan Ann (born September 29, 2000) is an American-Gambian taekwondo practitioner. He qualified to represent The Gambia at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Biography[edit]
Ann was born on September 29, 2000, in Maple Grove, Minnesota, where he grew up.[1][2][3] His father is from The Gambia.[1] He first played football before being enrolled in taekwondo classes when he was age six.[1][4] He started training with Grandmaster Eui Lee at Maple Grove's World Taekwondo Academy when he was age seven.[1] As a youth, he was selected for the U.S. national team in his age group several times, including winning the Pan American junior championship in 2016.[1] He also won gold at the 2016 US Open, bronze at the 2016 Mexico Open, gold at the 2017 US Open and bronze at the 2017 Pan American Championships in the 78 kg youth category.[2]
Ann graduated from Maple Grove Senior High School.[5] He began competing in senior tournaments in 2018, winning bronze at that year's Mexico Open, Pan Am Open, Costa Rica Open and Canada Open competitions.[2] He won bronze at the 2019 US Open, Dominican Republic Open and WT Presidents Cup while winning silver at the 2019 Canada Open in the 87 kg category.[2] In 2020, he won bronze at the Costa Rica Open and won the US Open tournament.[2]
In 2021, Ann, who had dual citizenship, switched from representing the U.S. internationally to The Gambia.[3] He competed at his first competitions for Gambia in 2022, earning a bronze medal at that year's African Taekwondo Championships.[1][6] He also won silver at the 2022 Puerto Rico Open and Rio Open, while being the bronze medalist at the Polish Open.[2] He won the Costa Rica Open in 2023.[2] Ann opened a taekwondo school in Andover, Minnesota, in 2024.[7]
Four months before the 2024 Olympic Qualification Tournament, Ann was injured in a shooting in Minneapolis, being shot in his right leg.[1] He underwent a successful surgery and recovered in time for the tournament.[1] There, he reached the finals and defeated Olympic medalist Anthony Obame to secure qualification for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[1] He became the first Gambian to ever qualify for the Olympics in taekwondo.[1]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Watta, Evelyn (April 3, 2024). "Alasan Ann: From gunshot survivor to earning a historic Olympic taekwondo spot for The Gambia". Olympics.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Ann, Alasan". TaekwondoData.com.
- ^ a b Khalatyan, Rafael (March 4, 2024). "Gambian taekwondo athlete chases Olympic gold after recovering from leg shot". Inside the Games.
- ^ Moini, Nina; Kuznetsiv, Aleesa (June 5, 2024). "Maple Grove man headed for Paris Olympics to be Gambia's first taekwondo athlete". KNOW-FM.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Miller, Alicia (March 14, 2024). "A dream come true: Alasan Ann headed to Olympics". HometownSource.com.
- ^ "Bronze for Gambia at the African Taekwondo Championship". The Standard. July 19, 2022.
- ^ Clayton, Ren (March 25, 2024). "Martial artist Alasan Ann preps for Paris Olympics, opens new taekwondo studio in Andover". CBS News.