The Pan American Taekwondo Union (PATU) honored the most outstanding taekwondo athletes in the Americas for the year 2025. The ceremony took place during the U.S. Open G2, held from March 5 to 8, 2026, in the iconic American city of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Without the traditional gala dinner as originally planned, a few weeks into the first quarter of the year and with little enthusiasm due to the way the awards ceremony was handled, the motto could have been "better late than never" or "there it is, so they can't say anything."
The award winners, almost identical to previous editions (which could be logical because they maintain their competitive level, but could also be a red flag as there does not seem to be any emerging growth in new talent), took to the podium, had their photo taken, and then waited to have their photo taken together, dressed in suits and pretending that they would NOT have preferred to go to bed.
In short, in keeping with the classic "whatever happened, happened," these were the winners:
Best Male Kyorugi Athlete: Henrique Marques 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Female Kyorugi Athlete: Maria Clara Pacheco 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Male Kyorugi Coach: Stephen Lambdin 🇺🇸 (USA)
Best Female Kyorugi Coach: Diego Guimaraes 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Male Poomsae Athlete: Sunghyun Eric Gun 🇺🇸 (USA)
Best Female Poomsae Athlete: Alejandra Higueros 🇬🇹 (GUA)
Best Male Poomsae Coach: Giduk Gun 🇺🇸 (USA)
Best Female Poomsae Coach: Alex Siliezar 🇬🇹 (GUA)
Best Male Parataekwondo Athlete: Hiury Da Silva 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Female Parataekwondo Athlete: Claudia Romero 🇲🇽 (MEX)
Best Male Parataekwondo Coach: Rodrigo Ferla 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Female Parataekwondo Coach: María Espinoza 🇲🇽 (MEX)
Best Male Kyorugi Referee: Jamsheed Afshad 🇺🇸 (USA)
Best Female Kyorugi Referee: Dania González 🇨🇱 (CHI)
Best Male Poomsae Referee: Christian Maldonado 🇵🇪 (PER)
Best Female Poomsae Referee: Patricia Tuqueres 🇪🇨 (ECU)
Best Team 2025: CBTKD 🇧🇷 (BRA)
Best Team 2025: USATKD 🇺🇸 (USA)
Sports Excellence: FDPTKD 🇵🇪 (PER)
Taekwondo Work and Development: Ecuadorian Taekwondo Federation 🇪🇨 (ECU)
Best Kick of the Year: Carl Alan Nickolas 🇺🇸 (USA)
