By Dellaram Ghalriz, AUSF Student Media Contributor
8 August 2026
TEHRAN, Iran – Yasaman Limouchi, a member of Iran’s National University Women’s Taekwondo Poomsae Team, has turned her attention to the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. As she prepares for one of the biggest events of her sporting career, the young athlete is training approximately six hours a day while continuing her university studies.
Speaking about her preparations, Limouchi highlighted the experience of training and competing alongside athletes from across Asia. “We had a very strong preparation camp and competed against athletes from China, South Korea, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Japan, all of whom had improved considerably compared to previous years,” she said.
For Limouchi, the Asian Games represent an important opportunity to compete on one of the continent’s biggest sporting stages. “The Asian Games is the most important competition in poomsae, and my main goal now is to prepare as well as possible for it,” she said.
Intensive Training for the Asian Games
Limouchi described her current preparation as highly demanding. She trains approximately six hours a day, six days a week, with sessions divided between technical poomsae work, freestyle choreography, flexibility training, strength conditioning, and endurance exercises. Morning sessions are usually dedicated to physical conditioning and flexibility, while afternoon sessions focus on technical execution, synchronization with teammates, and routine refinement.
“Our training schedule has become much more specialized since preparing for the Asian Games,” she said. “Every session is designed to improve a specific aspect of performance, whether it is balance, speed, power, or precision.”
She added that after the Asian Games, she plans to take a short recovery period before returning to regular national-team training and preparing for future international events. She also intends to devote more time to her university studies.
Balancing University and Elite Sport
A third-year student at Islamic Azad University, Limouchi is studying Physical Education and Sports Sciences. She acknowledged that combining elite-level sport with university life has been one of the biggest challenges of her career.
“Balancing sport and education is not just a slogan,” she said. “On training days, I often attend classes in the morning, go directly to practice in the afternoon, and study at night. During competition camps, I coordinate with professors in advance and use any free time for coursework.”
“I prepare weekly schedules for both training and academic tasks. Without organization, it would be impossible to continue at this level,” she added.
From Gymnastics to World-Level Poomsae
Limouchi’s athletic journey began long before taekwondo. She started gymnastics at the age of eight and switched to taekwondo two years later. Looking back, she believes her gymnastics background played a decisive role in her development.
“Gymnastics gave me flexibility, balance, body control, and confidence in performing difficult movements,” she said. “Those skills became a major advantage when I entered freestyle poomsae.”
The transition proved successful. Within four years of taking up taekwondo, she earned a bronze medal at the World Championships in the team event at the age of 14. She credits that progress to disciplined training, support from her family, especially her mother, and the technical foundation she developed through gymnastics.
A Growing International Record
After her first World Championship medal, Limouchi continued to build an international résumé. She won her first freestyle gold medal in an online international competition and later captured both bronze and gold medals at the Asian Championships in her first appearance in the youth age category.
She also represented Iran at the 2023 FISU World University Games in Chengdu, China, where she won two bronze medals.
Limouchi had also been expected to compete at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games in Germany, but she was ultimately unable to participate.
Family Support and Future Ambitions
Throughout the interview, Limouchi repeatedly emphasized the importance of family support. “There were many difficult moments, but my family always encouraged me to continue,” she said.
Her sporting development has also been shaped by the support she received from her family, particularly her mother, alongside the discipline required to maintain a demanding training schedule and continue her education.
Looking beyond her own sporting journey, Limouchi is also optimistic about the future of taekwondo in Iran. “The sport is growing rapidly, many talented athletes are emerging, and the success of Iranian taekwondo athletes at major international events has inspired a new generation,” she said.
She encouraged young student-athletes not to abandon either their studies or their sporting ambitions. “With discipline, planning, and persistence, it is possible to succeed in both,” she said.
