By Pam Kiriakidis
Wandong’s Mackenzie Macdonald will fight at the World Cadet Taekwondo Championships for the second time, representing Australia in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Mackenzie secured a place on Team Australia at the World Cadet Selections event in Brisbane earlier last month, followed by two internationally recognised competitions – Oceania President’s Cup and the Australian Open – where she earned gold for both tournaments.
The 13-year-old, attended her first world competition in Bulgaria last year in the 12 to 14 years old, 29 to under 33 kilograms division. She said she had a gameplan to pass the first round.
Mackenzie said the plan was to be ‘a bit more strategic’ at this year’s competition, which starts on August 28.
“Bulgaria was my first international competition so I didn’t know what to expect. I went there thinking ‘oh it’s just another competition’ but it was massive,” she said.
“This time I now know what that environment is like. I believe I will be more focused for my fights.”
While the previous World Cadet Taekwondo Championship was categorised in weight divisions, with Mackenzie defeated by a much taller opponent in her first round match, World Taekwondo has changed its division rules for cadet competitors to now fight in height classes.
Since Bulgaria, Mackenzie has grown and will compete in the 152-centimetre division, against opponents of similar height.
Mackenzie said she planned on using her intelligence to her advantage.
“I believe [height] will help me with my result especially because in all weight divisions, I’ve always had taller fighters because they’ve manipulated to get into the same division but are super tall – it’s been hard for me to get around the long legs,” she said.
“Of course I want to win but there’s a lot of steps before I get there – mainly my focus is the first round of my first fight and pretty much fight smart.”
Like last year, Mackenzie and her family are fundraising to cover the competition’s costs, estimated to be $12,000, with $7000 for athlete expenses and about $5000 for a guardian.
Athlete pathways for Australian Taekwondo are developing, however Australian Taekwondo has informed that funding is not yet available to help team representatives and encouraged competitors to seek community support.
The six-time-national champion was able to get to last year’s world championships with the support of her community and sporting grants. She said it was humbling to receive donations once again.
“It makes me feel really, really happy that the community has faith in just a little young girl trying to achieve her dreams, it makes me smile,” she said.
After the World Championships, Mackenzie will compete in the Bosnian Open, gaining more international experience to enhance her chances of becoming a developing athlete under the CombatAUS National Performance Centre – the hub that tracks developing world Judo and Taekwondo athletes capable of taking on world-leading competitions.
To help Mackenzie with donations, visit .
