Zaid Kareem and Julyana Al Sadeq carry Jordan's Olympic medal hopes in taekwondo

Kareem competes in men's -68kg category on Thursday while Al Sadeq goes in the women's -67kg competition on Friday

Jordan's Zaid Kareem won a silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou. AFP

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Zaid Kareem is the latest in a string of gifted Jordanians to have risen up the taekwondo ranks and populated podiums on the sport’s biggest stages over the past decade.

A bronze medallist at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, Kareem added a silver medal to his collection at the Asian Games in Hangzhou last October.

He now looks primed for success at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he hopes to add to Jordan’s growing medal haul in the combat sport.

Earlier this year, Kareem took part in a training camp in Fujairah along with Jordanian teammates Julyana Al Sadeq and Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Saleh El Sharabaty.

All three are in Paris – along with Rama Abu Al Rab who competes in the women's +68kg category – and all carry genuine medal prospects for Jordan.

“We train together every day, we practically live together. We’re not a team, we are family,” Kareem told The National.

“We are always at each other’s houses, and are together day and night training. Saleh’s medal in Tokyo gives me even more belief in myself because we train together all the time. So his silver medal was one of the biggest incentives for me to scoop many medals after Tokyo.”

Kareem begins his quest for gold in the Round of 16 in the men's -68kg category on Thursday, where he will first face Brazil's Edival Pontes (1.48pm UAE).

“I defeated so many great athletes in 2022, including all three medallists – gold, silver, and bronze – from the Tokyo Olympics. So that was very encouraging, and I proved to myself I belong among the best, and realised that I was capable of winning at this level," added Kareem.

Julyana Al Sadeq of Jordan celebrates her win in the World Taekwondo Grand Prix final against Aleksandra Perisic of Serbia in the female -67kg category at Manchester Regional Arena in December 2023. Getty

Al Sadeq has come a long way since 2016, when missing out on the Rio Games left her contemplating giving up taekwondo altogether.

Back then the Olympic podium must have felt cruelly out of reach, but fast forward eight years and she heads to Paris among the favourites for a medal in the women's -67kg class.

Al Sadeq says her rise in the intervening years is down to a tireless work ethic and a willingness to explore the psychological side of elite sport. It has also coincided with a golden period for Jordanian taekwondo.

In Rio, Ahmad Abughaush topped the podium in the -68kg division before El Sharabaty (-80kg) won silver in Tokyo, where Al Sadeq also competed and led out her nation's delegation at the opening ceremony.

“It was incredibly inspiring to represent Jordan on such a huge stage and be my country’s flag-bearer. After the [Tokyo] Games, my determination was to improve,” said Al Sadeq.

“For Tokyo, I qualified through the Asian Qualification Tournament; for Paris, I qualified as one of the top six [athletes] in the world. I set higher goals for myself.”

While those goals undoubtedly include a podium spot in Paris, the Amman-based Al Sadeq is aware of the bigger picture and is happy to embrace her role as a trailblazer for Arab girls in the arena of combat sports. Her passion for taekwondo has not always been understood or accepted, but family support has helped her to filter out the dissenting voices.

“Overcoming the resistance I have faced has been a challenge. It’s required a strong sense of determination and belief in my abilities,” Al Sadeq said. “My family and mentors have encouraged me to stay resilient and to serve my passion, despite social pressures.

“They have always told me, ‘You’re not what they’re saying about you. It’s much more important for us that you’re doing what you love. You should believe in yourself, and you will achieve anything you want'.”

Al Sadeq gets her Olympic campaign underway in a Round of 16 -67kg bout against Fiji's Lolohea Naitasi on Friday. Teammate Abu Al Rab begins her +68kg campaign at the same stage against Morocco's Fatima-Ezzahra Aboufaras on Saturday (11:58am UAE).