Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — Playa del Carmen will host the Riviera Maya Taekwondo Championship on Saturday, June 6, at the Poliforum sports complex, with more than 850 athletes already confirmed, according to Jorge Juan Uc Medina, director of the Institute of Taekwondo of the Mexican Southeast.
The event, sanctioned by the Mexican Taekwondo Federation, will feature local standout Daphne Mercado Lima, who recently won a bronze medal in South Korea.
“Since I started competing, I’ve seen the level of my teammates grow a lot. With participants from several states, there will be great sparring and very high-level competition in both the women’s and men’s divisions,” Mercado told NewsDay Caribe.
Mercado said she studies opponents by reviewing recordings of their matches and analyzes the timing of their kicks and techniques during competition.
Schedule and Activities
Uc Medina noted that the institute has partnered with the local sports authority to bring top athletes to Playa del Carmen’s training center. Athletes will begin arriving Thursday, June 4, at the Wyndham Garden hotel. On Friday, June 5, a mass training session will take place, allowing local athletes to interact with competitors from other states. Participants aged 7 and older are welcome.
Red and black belt athletes will begin training at 3:00 p.m. under the supervision of Arturo Farías, an eighth-degree black belt instructor and one of Mexico’s most accomplished taekwondo figures, with 17 years of experience working with the national team.
Registration and Competition
The championship will involve 60 participants and 120 support staff. Registration for athletes and schools that missed earlier deadlines will open Saturday morning, June 7. Competition begins at 8:00 a.m. with the youngest participants, starting at age 3.
Confirmed participating states include San Luis Potosí, Yucatán, Puebla, Veracruz, Campeche, Tabasco, Mexico City, and several regions of Quintana Roo.
Economic Impact and Sports Tourism
Uc Medina highlighted that young taekwondo athletes often need at least 15,000 pesos to compete out of state, and up to 30,000 pesos if traveling with a companion. By bringing the competition to Playa del Carmen, the event removes that financial barrier.
The championship is expected to boost local tourism, as sports tourism should include all disciplines, Uc said. Taekwondo, he noted, has international projection.
