Andrei Rotaru fails Olympic qualification

Andrei Rotaru came close to a historic qualification for the Olympics in London. The Moldovan athlete finished 4th at the qualifying European taekwondo tournament, WTF version, in Russia. In order to qualify for the Olympics, Rotaru had to get into the top three, Info-Prim Neo reports. Andrei competed in the 58 kg category, where he bested Denmark’s Romuald Philip Reyes and Croatia’s Stipe Jarloni, but was defeated by Spain’s Joel Gonzalez Bonilla in the semifinals. The Moldovan fought for the bronze medal, but was outclassed by Swedish fighter Uno Sanli, 7-10. On Saturday, January 28, Vladislav Arventi (68 kg) will enter the competition. On Sunday, Iulia Latus (67 kg) will enter the women’s tournament. This is the last chance for coach Vladislav Mazur’s athletes to book entries at the Olympics.