# UNBELIEVABLE!  Aaron Cook NOT selected (currently) for Team GB



## andyjeffries (May 24, 2012)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ol...n-from-Team-GB-taekwondo-squad-for-Games.html

I'm absolutely shocked...

"No, thanks, we don't need any gold medals at the Olympics - it's enough that we're hosting it and taking part..."


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## Sukerkin (May 24, 2012)

Politics affecting martial arts, especially Korean ones?  I'm shocked?! :lol:


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## ETinCYQX (May 24, 2012)

Koreans have nothing to do with this...

Im sure part of it is Aaron leaving the GB official program.


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## andyjeffries (May 24, 2012)

ETinCYQX said:


> Koreans have nothing to do with this...
> 
> Im sure part of it is Aaron leaving the GB official program.



I'm sure that's most of it.  However, just to be clear, he left the fulltime GB Taekwondo Academy, he didn't leave British Taekwondo (the association).

And besides, surely we should be putting our best team out there regardless of who's "in" or "out" of whatever programme...

Still feeling sore about this...


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## ETinCYQX (May 24, 2012)

andyjeffries said:


> I'm sure that's most of it.  However, just to be clear, he left the fulltime GB Taekwondo Academy, he didn't leave British Taekwondo (the association).
> 
> And besides, surely we should be putting our best team out there regardless of who's "in" or "out" of whatever programme...
> 
> Still feeling sore about this...



I didn't say it was right, it's a disgusting reason IMHO, but realistically that probably pissed someone off in a position of power. 

Wasnt sure how the whole thing worked so thanks for the clarification Andy. Cook is training at a private club now right?


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## terryl965 (May 24, 2012)

This has got to be the biggest dis-appointment I have had in years. This kids deserves to be there, he is one of the best fighters in TKD and not on a team. All I can say is TKD has made one big mistake.


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## ATC (May 24, 2012)

Wow!!! Even USAT could not do this! If you go to team trails and win you are in, simple as that. There are Olympic trials as well but how can they simply keep him out because he wanted to train with his coach and on his own. Makes no sense to me.


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## Sukerkin (May 24, 2012)

ETinCYQX said:


> Koreans have nothing to do with this...



Er, yeah.  That was meant to be a joke, *ET*, inspired by the legendary squabbles that go on in the TKD associations.  

This is clearly a 'political' decsion made by someone whose nose got put out of joint by some choices made by the martial artist in question.  Whether a change of heart will come about due to the publicity, only time will tell.


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## RobinTKD (May 24, 2012)

Wow... I mean... What?

Did these people not go to Manchester? This is just beyond ridiculous.


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## Gnarlie (May 24, 2012)

*pre-olympic British Taekwondo biggest moment publicity stunt cough cough*  He'll win the appeal.   Either that or someone somewhere is pretty short sighted. 

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2


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## ETinCYQX (May 24, 2012)

Sukerkin said:


> Er, yeah.  That was meant to be a joke, *ET*, inspired by the legendary squabbles that go on in the TKD associations.
> 
> This is clearly a 'political' decsion made by someone whose nose got put out of joint by some choices made by the martial artist in question.  Whether a change of heart will come about due to the publicity, only time will tell.



I got the joke.  most of those squabbles have little to do with Koreans too to be fair


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## Buka (May 24, 2012)

Not fair. I feel bad for Aaron.


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## andyjeffries (May 25, 2012)

ETinCYQX said:


> I didn't say it was right, it's a disgusting reason IMHO, but realistically that probably pissed someone off in a position of power.



I agree (and I didn't think you thought it was right).



ETinCYQX said:


> Wasnt sure how the whole thing worked so thanks for the clarification Andy. Cook is training at a private club now right?



He has a large shed equipped in his bag garden and then travels around the world to train with others, I believe.

The selection process appears to be one done by committee rather than open team trials.  To obtain the selection rules/process you have to apply to British Taekwondo.


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## Gwai Lo Dan (May 25, 2012)

andyjeffries said:


> He has a large shed equipped in his bag garden and then travels around the world to train with others, I believe.


This interview talks about his leaving GB Taekwondo's national acadamy, (starting at 4:37) and shows his training facility in his back yard (6:20 shows the outside view, with numerous shots from inside).  It is one nice "shed"!


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## andyjeffries (May 26, 2012)

Sign this petition:

http://www.change.org/petitions/put-aaron-cook-in-the-olympics


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## Tez3 (May 26, 2012)

andyjeffries said:


> Sign this petition:
> 
> http://www.change.org/petitions/put-aaron-cook-in-the-olympics




Done.


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## Brian R. VanCise (May 26, 2012)

Disgusting if this is political crap!


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## Archtkd (May 27, 2012)

andyjeffries said:


> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ol...n-from-Team-GB-taekwondo-squad-for-Games.html
> 
> I'm absolutely shocked...
> 
> "No, thanks, we don't need any gold medals at the Olympics - it's enough that we're hosting it and taking part..."



What role does Joseph Salim have in this? I would think it must be stressful for him, a recently hired American coach for a British national team, to be in the midst of such heated controversy.


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## Markku P (May 28, 2012)

Joseph Salim is from Denmark then he moved to Hungary. Then USA.. I think he is more European 

/Markku


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## Markku P (May 28, 2012)

"They will demand an explanation of the reasons behind Cook&#8217;s omission, and are understood to be minded to take the highly unusual step of rejecting a sport&#8217;s nomination."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ol...ation-for-Aaron-Cooks-taekwondo-omission.html
​


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## Archtkd (May 28, 2012)

Markku P said:


> Joseph Salim is from Denmark then he moved to Hungary. Then USA.. I think he is more European
> 
> /Markku



Thanks for that info. I thought he might have become an American citizen.


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## aftab (May 31, 2012)

Has anyone found out who is on this almost secret 'selection panel' yet?


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## aftab (May 31, 2012)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> Disgusting if this is political crap!



Very hard to tell at this stage, as everything (like the selection criteria, and who are the selectors) is hidden from the public...

Sadly most of the public is fast beginning to think its a little bit fishy that the UK's poster boy for TKD, and the soon to be 'ranked no.1 in the World' has been left off the squad.

Only time will tell.


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## Carol (May 31, 2012)

andyjeffries said:


> Sign this petition:
> 
> http://www.change.org/petitions/put-aaron-cook-in-the-olympics



Signed.  I really want to see him in the Olympics.


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## ATC (May 31, 2012)

Done. They need to make sure the top competitors are competing. Not the yeah he is pretty good competitors. Get the number 1 ranks guy in the games.


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## Gwai Lo Dan (May 31, 2012)

aftab said:


> Has anyone found out who is on this almost secret 'selection panel' yet?


I kind of wondered about the communication process.  Who tells Aaron Cook "we are not picking you".  How does that work?  Do they say that early enough to allow an appeal?


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## aftab (Jun 1, 2012)

Gwai Lo Dan said:


> I kind of wondered about the communication process.  Who tells Aaron Cook "we are not picking you".  How does that work?  Do they say that early enough to allow an appeal?



Let's hope it wasn't 'you're dumped from the team mate' by text! lol


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## Gorilla (Jun 1, 2012)

Unfortunately for Aaron Cook this is how it is in allot of the TKD World.  If you don't play the game. Conform to what the National Governing Body wants they will punish you.  This is his punishment.  We can only hope that the BOA of GBR rights this horrible wrong.  Aaron had to leave National program of GBR. They were hurting his game! He was not going to win under that program!  He went with Master Remarck and he had a phenominal year.  It hurt the pride GBR National Program and they are acting in this petty way.  This happens in the USA.  Just ask Charlotte Craig?  Stop training with the Lopez and no more Olympics.


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## msmitht (Jun 1, 2012)

Gorilla said:


> Unfortunately for Aaron Cook this is how it is in allot of the TKD World.  If you don't play the game. Conform to what the National Governing Body wants they will punish you.  This is his punishment.  We can only hope that the BOA of GBR rights this horrible wrong.  Aaron had to leave National program of GBR. They were hurting his game! He was not going to win under that program!  He went with Master Remarck and he had a phenominal year.  It hurt the pride GBR National Program and they are acting in this petty way.  This happens in the USA.  Just ask Charlotte Craig?  Stop training with the Lopez and no more Olympics.


Charlotte trained with hyon lee then switched to jimmy kim one or two years before the olympics. When did she train with the lopez family?


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## Gorilla (Jun 1, 2012)

About 6 months before the 08 Olympics!!!! She even lived in Sugurland for awhile.  Went back To Jimmy Kim and they don't pick her division.  Don't train with a National team coach and they wont pick your division for the Olympics.


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## aftab (Jun 2, 2012)

Latest update from the Beeb (aka BBC): http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/18293446


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## aftab (Jun 2, 2012)

aftab said:


> Has anyone found out who is on this almost secret 'selection panel' yet?



Looks like the Daily Telegraph has found out who was on one of the panels, read the full story here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ol...-Aaron-Cook-GB-Taekwondo-selection-panel.html


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## Master Dan (Jun 3, 2012)

If you would like the latest position on why Cook was eliminated and the pending decision go to this link.

http://en.mastaekwondo.com/2012/06/hall-gb-taekwondo-followed-protocol/


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## aftab (Jun 4, 2012)

The nasty side of TKD selections showing it head: http://en.mastaekwondo.com/2012/06/lutalo&#8217;s-hate-hell/
There is nothing worse then fan boys, internet trolls and err...complete nutters, oh dear :s437:


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## Tez3 (Jun 4, 2012)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/ol...-Aaron-Cook-victim-sports-secret-society.html

Damning.


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## Master Dan (Jun 5, 2012)

*Aron Cook GB replacement gets hate emails *http://en.mastaekwondo.com/2012/06/lutalo%e2%80%99s-hate-hell/


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## Markku P (Jun 6, 2012)

5th June 2012
[h=1]UPDATE ON OLYMPIC SELECTION: MALE -80KG[/h]GB Taekwondo can confirm that following a reconvened Selection Panel meeting this morning, a nomination has been made to the British Olympic Association (BOA) for the outstanding male -80kg position.
We now await the decision of the BOA as to the formal ratification of that nomination.


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## Tez3 (Jun 7, 2012)

Markku P said:


> 5th June 2012
> *UPDATE ON OLYMPIC SELECTION: MALE -80KG*
> 
> GB Taekwondo can confirm that following a reconvened Selection Panel meeting this morning, a nomination has been made to the British Olympic Association (BOA) for the outstanding male -80kg position.
> We now await the decision of the BOA as to the formal ratification of that nomination.



It's not Cook I'm afraid. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jun/07/london-2012-olympics-aaron-cook-taekwondo?newsfeed=true


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