Martial Arts Professional Magazine

Sugar Land, Texas…Steven Lopez and his brother Mark and sister Diana became the first U.S. siblings to win medals at the same Olympic Games in the Taekwondo competition, but their victories are bittersweet, as Steven Lopez and USA Taekwondo have filed a complaint to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, concerning the application of rules during one of his matches.

Lopez is quick to state that his complaint is not meant to overturn the outcome of his lose to Mario Sarmiento of Italy, the eventual silver medalist in the welterweight division. Lopez and USA Taekwondo claim that the World Taekwondo Federation did not provide fair and proper judging during the competition.

According to Lopez, the WTF did not follow its own rules when officials failed to examine the video of Lopez’s losing match. Lopez and USA TKD officials contend that Oh II Nam, the Indonesian referee, penalized Lopez incorrectly. Lopez stated he would have abided by the video review, even if the WTF officials had agreed with the referee’s rulings, but the officials were unwilling to watch the recording.

Jean Lopez, another brother and coach of the U.S. team, said that another purpose of the formal complaint was to help develop procedures to review possible judging and scoring mistakes, as is claimed to have occurred in Beijing.

Steven Lopez, two-time Olympic gold medalist, won the bronze in his division. Mark won a silver medal in the men’s featherweight division, and required surgery on his left hand, after breaking two bones during his opening match. Diana, who won a bronze in the women’s featherweight division, will also need surgery to reattach a ligament in her left wrist, which occurred from blocking opponents’ kicks.