By Paul Eddison
Caden Cunningham heads to Paris for his first Olympics knowing that he will come up against taekwondo heavyweights who are bigger, heavier and more experienced than him.
And the 21-year-old from Huddersfield has the innate confidence required to achieve his dream of becoming the youngest Olympic heavyweight champion in his sport.
In an event where your opponent is trying to kick you in the face, a height and weight disadvantage is not easy to overcome.
But Cunningham has always had a dream of winning gold in Paris and carries that self-assuredness with him every time he fights – even if the first sight of vastly bigger opponents is unnerving.
He said: “You think ‘Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, he’s massive!’ Then as soon as I get there, I put my headguard on, I get in the mindset of ‘I’m going to kick you in the face’.
“For me, it’s about building an ego and pride when you get into the ring. A lot of these guys are bigger and older than me. I’m not small, but I’m not a big heavyweight. Most of these have five or six inches on me, and ten years’ experience. So most fights I’m the underdog and I go out there and think, I’ll kick you in the face, let’s get it on.
“For anyone to go to the Olympics and not go for gold, you should hold yourself to a higher standard. You almost want to manifest it, speak it into existence. But also, I decided I was going to go to these Olympics ten years ago, I didn’t decide I was going to go to participate, I’m going to win.
“This Olympics is an opportunity to fight the best I can in front of the most people. It’s the biggest mental and physical challenge I’ll go through in my taekwondo career, so what could go wrong? It’s the best opportunity I could get.
“I’m ready to unleash everything I’ve been working towards.”
Caden Cunningham. Credit: Reuters via Beat Media subscription
Cunningham’s path to gold will not be easy. As it stands, he could face Niger’s Abdul Razzak Issoufou and Cuba’s Rafael Alba in his first two fights, both former world champions and Olympic medallists.
Where some might be daunted by that prospect, Cunningham says bring it on.
He said: “They are both big 6’8”, 6’9” guys. They are tough opponents but I rise to challenges. If I relax and perform right, I’m Olympic champion level. I’m confident I’ll be able to show that on August 10.
“I feel like you can never be fully prepared for something like this but I feel like I’m in a good head space, I feel like I know what’s coming.
“I’m going to go out there, it’s man versus man, we’re going to have a fight and make sure I’m the better man. Four fights, come away with my gold and all of it will have been worth it.”
Cunningham is one of four Brits who will compete in taekwondo for Team GB, joining double Olympic champion Jade Jones, Tokyo silver medallist Bradly Sinden and fellow Olympic debutant Rebecca McGowan.
The latter two share a house with Cunningham, with each member of the household hoping to bring back an Olympic medal.
And for Cunningham to do so, he will hope to put into practice some of the lessons learned in his fledgling international career.
He explained: “I was a very edgy fighter when I was younger, all I wanted to do was kick, kick, kick. But taekwondo is a game, a point-scoring game so for me it’s about being relaxed and how I can play the game with my own flavour of fight there.
“In 2022 at the Europeans, it was my first year as a fully-fledged senior. I lost a fight on golden point in the quarter-final.
“It was a very boring match, neither of us scored any points, I wasn’t hurt, I wasn’t beaten up but I lost, the day was done for me. That is when I realised that this isn’t just about fighting. I thought, if that’s how it is, that is how it is.
“Let’s get to the gym and learn how to fix it. I did and since then, I’ve slowly increased my medal tally, my ability in the ring and I’ve become the force to be reckoned with that I am now.”
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Both images: Credit: Reuters via Beat Media subscription
