World Taekwondo President hopes Asian and European Olympic qualifiers held this year

SEOUL - World Taekwondo President Choue Chung-won expressed hope on Saturday that Asian and European athletes will be able to secure their berths for the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games this year.

"To our athletes in Asia and Europe, we hope that you will have your chance to qualify this year," Choue said in a message celebrating the 47th anniversary of the founding of World Taekwondo.

To date, three out of the five Taekwondo Continental Qualification Tournaments have finished safely and successfully. Remaining Asian and European qualifiers have been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are constantly monitoring the global situation to ensure everyone's safety and well-being and also to ensure fair play," the message read. "In the meantime, I wish you the very best for your training in whatever safe form you can manage as directed by your coaches and the best available government advice."

Taekwondo's Asian qualifier has been suspended after switching from Wuxi, China to Jordan's capital Amman and being delayed until June 5 to 7. The European event has been postponed for a second time after its relocation to Moscow.