Mahama Cho
Cho at the 2016 Olympics
Personal information
Born16 August 1989 (1989-08-16) (age 34)
Ivory Coast
Height192 cm (6 ft 4 in)[1]
Weight100 kg (220 lb)
Sport
SportTaekwondo
Coached byPaul Green[2]
Medal record
Representing  Great Britain
Men's taekwondo
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2017 Muju +87 kg
Grand Prix
Gold medal – first place2013 Manchester+80 kg
Gold medal – first place2017 Rabat+80 kg
Silver medal – second place2014 Astana+80 kg
Bronze medal – third place2014 Suzhou+80 kg
Bronze medal – third place2015 Moscow+80 kg
Bronze medal – third place2017 London+80 kg
Bronze medal – third place2018 Taoyuan+80 kg
Bronze medal – third place2019 Rome+80 kg
Updated on 19 September 2019.

Mahama Cho (born 16 August 1989) is a taekwondo practitioner who competes in the +87 kg category. Born in the Ivory Coast, he has represented both Great Britain and France in the sport.[3]

Early life and personal life

Abdoufata Cho Mahama was raised by his grandmother in the Ivory Coast; his father was abroad and his mother was unable to care for him.[4] A practising Muslim, he attended an Arabic school in Abidjan.[4] As a child, Cho was bullied.[4]

Cho moved to London at the age of eight, at the request of his father.[4] Cho's father Zakaia was a former African taekwondo champion who was teaching the sport there whilst also driving taxis.[4] When he arrived in England, staying first in Kennington and then in Stockwell, Cho was unable to speak any English.[4] He lived with his father's new family, forming a particularly close friendship with his step-brother David.[4]

In 2014, he became engaged to French heptathlete Antoinette Nana Djimou.[4] but their relationship ended in 2017.

Football career

Cho played semi-professionally for Erith Town.[4] He trialled with Dagenham and Redbridge at the age of 16.[4] He gave up his football career at the age of 17 to focus on taekwondo.[4]

Taekwondo career

He joined the British taekwondo squad at the age of 17.[4] He was injured at the 2011 World Championships.[4] After that event, he moved to Paris to study.[4] He joined the French taekwondo squad, winning gold at 2013 Dutch and USA Opens.[4]

After returning to compete for Britain, at the World Taekwondo Grand Prix he won a gold medal in 2013,[5] and a silver medal in 2014.[6] In January 2016 he secured Britain their fourth and final qualifying place for the 2016 Summer Olympics.[7]

Results

2017

2016

5th 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2015

  • Gold President's Cup, in Hamburg, Germany
  • Gold European Olympic Qualification Tournament, in Istanbul, Turkey
  • Silver Polish International Open, in Warsaw, Poland
  • Silver US Open, in Las Vegas, United States
  • Bronze Serbia International Open, in Belgrad, Serbia
  • Bronze Grand Prix, in Moscow, Russia

2014

  • Gold Paris International Open, in Paris, France
  • Gold Commonwealth Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland
  • Gold Swiss International Open
  • Gold Bahrain International Open, Bahrain
  • Silver Grand Prix Series in Astana, Kazakhstan
  • Silver Luxor International Open, in Luxor, Egypt
  • Bronze Fujairah International Open, in United Arab Emirats
  • Bronze Grand Prix, in Suzhou, China

2013

  • Gold Grand Prix Final in Manchester, England
  • Gold German International Open, in Hamburg, Germany
  • Gold Dutch International Open, in Eindhoven, Nederlands
  • Silver Paris International Open, in Paris, France
  • Bronze Spanish International Open, in Alicante, Spain
  • Bronze US Open, in Las Vegas, England

2012

  • Gold Israel International Open, in Tel-Aviv, Israel
  • Bronze Spanish International Open, in Alicante, Spain
  • Bronze Dutch International Open, in Eindhoven, Nederlands

References

  1. ↑ Mahama Cho Archived 22 September 2016 at the Wayback Machine. rio2016.com
  2. ↑ Mahama Cho. nbcolympics.com
  3. ↑ "Mahama Cho". GB Taekwondo. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Nick Hope (23 October 2014). "Mahama Cho: How taekwondo saved me from a life of bullying". BBC. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Nick Hope (13 December 2013). "World Taekwondo Grand Prix: GB's Mahama Cho wins gold". BBC. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "World Grand Prix: Mahama Cho claims GB's first medal". BBC. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  7. ↑ "Rio 2016: Mahama Cho earns GB an Olympic place in +80kg category". BBC. 17 January 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
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