Ícaro Miguel Soares

Ícaro Miguel Soares
Personal information
Full nameÍcaro Miguel Martins Soares
Born (1995-04-29) 29 April 1995 (age 29)
Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Home townSão Caetano do Sul, Brazil
Height187 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight80 kg (176 lb)
Sport
SportTaekwondo
University teamUniversidade Municipal de São Caetano do Sul
Medal record
Representing  Brazil
Men's taekwondo
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2019 Manchester 87 kg
Pan American Games
Silver medal – second place 2019 Lima 80 kg
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 2021 Cancún 87 kg
Gold medal – first place 2022 Punta Cana 87 kg
Silver medal – second place 2018 Spokane 87 kg
South American Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Asunción 87 kg

Ícaro Miguel Martins Soares (born 29 April 1995) is a Brazilian taekwondo athlete who won a silver medal at the 2019 World Taekwondo Championships on the men's heavyweights.[1]

He represented Brazil at the 2020 Summer Olympics.[2][3][4]

Career

Icaro suffered a domestic accident at the age of six, when he lost 90% of the vision in his right eye. Disability does not prevented him from developing as a fighter, to the point of becoming one of the top athletes in the world.[4]

At the 2017 World Taekwondo Championships, Ícaro was eliminated on his debut by Chinese Jintao Liu. The Brazilian had an advantage in the first two rounds (13 to 9), but suffered a comeback in the last two and ended up defeated 19 to 17.[5]

At the 2018 Pan American Taekwondo Championships held in Spokane, USA, he won the silver medal in the 87 kg category.[6]

At the 2019 World Taekwondo Championships held in Manchester, United Kingdom, Ícaro achieved a historic result by reaching the final and obtaining the silver medal.[7][8]

At the 2019 Pan American Games held in Lima, Peru, he reached the final, but was defeated by Miguel Angel Trejo (19-17) and took the silver medal in the under 80 kg category.[9]

In April 2020, Ícaro became the leader of the world rankings in the under-87 kg category. Furthermore, he came to occupy fourth position in the Olympic category up to 80 kg. He was the first Brazilian taekwondist ever to top the world rankings.[10]

At the 2021 Pan American Taekwondo Championships held in Cancún, Mexico, Ícaro won his first title in the -87 kg category.[11][12]

Ícaro participated in the 2020 Olympic Games, being eliminated in the first round.[13]

At the 2022 Pan American Taekwondo Championships held in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Ícaro won his second title in the tournament by obtaining the gold medal in the 87 kg category.[14]

At the 2022 South American Games held in Asunción, Paraguay, he won the gold medal in the +80 kg category.[15]

At the 2022 World Taekwondo Championships, Ícaro, despite having won silver in the previous World Championship in the under-87 kg category and being leader of the Olympic ranking in the heavyweight category, lost in his debut to Abolfazl Abbasi Pouya, from Iran.[16]

Ícaro is the first Latin American to remain at the top of the world rankings for a long time: he spent three years as the best in the world until leaving this position in mid-2023.[17]

At the 2023 World Taekwondo Championships, Ícaro won his first fight, but, in the round of 16, he faced a tough opponent: Kang Sang-hyun, from South Korea, the main power in taekwondo, and ended up being eliminated. The Korean ended up being the tournament champion.[18]

References

  1. ^ "Maicon Andrade garante o bronze no Mundial de Taekwondo em Manchester". Globoesporte (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2 October 2020. Retrieved 19 May 2019.
  2. ^ Cesare, Lucas (18 March 2021). "Conheça as equipes brasileiras já classificadas em suas modalidades para as Olimpíadas de Tóquio". Sportbuzz (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 18 March 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Taekwondo - MARTINS SOARES Icaro Miguel". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  4. ^ a b "COB Profile for Tokyo 2020 Olympics". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Maicon Andrade perde para nº 4 do mundo e cai nas quartas do Mundial de Muju". Archived from the original on 24 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  6. ^ "Brasil fatura 14 medalhas no Pan-Americano de Taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  7. ^ "Brasil sobe no pódio três vezes no último dia e bate recorde de medalhas em mundiais". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  8. ^ "Após Mundial histórico, Falavigna elogia atual geração e vê Brasil em novo patamar: "Grupo sólido"". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  9. ^ "Ícaro Martins perde para colombiano e é prata no taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  10. ^ "Ícaro Miguel lidera, pela primeira vez, o ranking mundial do taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  11. ^ "Taekwondo: Brasil faura 13 medalhas no primeiro dia do Pan no México". Archived from the original on 26 June 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  12. ^ "Ícaro Miguel e Gabriele Siqueira levam ouro na abertura do Pan-Americano de Taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  13. ^ "Tóquio 2020: Ícaro Miguel perde nas oitavas de final do Taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Icaro Miguel e Paulo Souza levam ouro, e Brasil chega a seis medalhas no Pan de taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  15. ^ "Milena Titoneli e Icaro Miguel 'renascem' e fecham participação do taekwondo em Assunção com ouro". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  16. ^ "Milena Titoneli é bronze e dá ao Brasil 1ª medalha no Mundial de Taekwondo". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  17. ^ "Fazendo história: Ícaro Miguel do taekwondo conta como foi criar projeto social na cidade em que cresceu". Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  18. ^ "Ícaro Miguel e Camila Bezerra caem nas oitavas do Mundial de Baku". Archived from the original on 16 November 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.