Taipei, March 12 (CNA) Days after missing weight in the United States, Taiwanese Olympic medalist Lo Chia-ling (羅嘉翎) bounced back on Saturday to win a bronze medal in the women's under-57 kilogram event at the Dutch Open Taekwondo Championships.
Lo, 21, had been due to start her 2023 competitive season at the March 3-5 U.S. Open Taekwondo Championships in Las Vegas, but ended up missing weight by 0.1 kg, even after cutting her hair in a last-ditch effort to tip the scales.
Competing Saturday in the Netherlands, Lo won two early bouts before being defeated by Raheleh Asemani of Belgium in the semifinals, finishing the tournament tied for third place.
In an interview with CNA, Lo said she had to "accept what happened [with her disqualification] and stay focused," especially as she has a packed competition schedule in March and is currently getting over a cold.
Lo will next compete in the Belgian Open, which takes place from March 18-19.
Taiwanese athletes bagged a total of five medals at the Dutch Open -- one gold, two silvers and two bronzes -- with 18-year-old Huang Ying-hsuan (黃映瑄) finishing first in the women's under-46 kg category.
Huang, who made her competitive debut as an adult in last year's World Taekwondo Championships -- the sport's biggest event -- has won already won four medals in as many competitions this year.
