CUSAI Taekwondo - Poomsae Semi-Final

IT Tallaght student Niamh Buffini just missed out on a spot in the Poomsae final at the World University Games this week in Belgrade.

Buffini, from Clondalkin in Dublin, made it through her qualifying round with a score of 7.16 from a possible 10 in the Taekwondo discipline which examines the technical side of the sport. However, the same score achieved in the semi-final wasn't enough to take Buffini through to Thursday's final.

Her coach Robert Taaffe was pleased with her performance: "We are disappointed of course not to get to the final, but we have made great strides in the sport in the last few years and to get to the semi-final was an excellent achievement."

The Taekwondo discipline of Poomsae, was a solo performance by Buffini, but it can also be performed in pairs. The non-combat event is judged by a panel of judges giving marks for energy, precision, speed and control of the movements.

Buffini, who is a member of the South Dublin Taekwondo Club was in a tough semi-final grouping with representatives from Korea, Spain and Turkey taking the top three spots.