A DARLINGTON teenager has won a gold medal in her first international taekwondo (TKD) competition.

Sara Graham, 15, who trains at Haughton Education Village three times a week, travelled to Portugal to the Peniche Open and managed to fight her way through to the final were she won 12-3 in the final.

The competition attracted more than 500 competitors and teams from 15 different countries including Portugal, India, Luxembourg, Spain, Ireland, England, France and Mexico.

The Darlington-based Chung Do Kwan TKD club won two gold, six silver and four bronze at its first international competition.

Instructor Katey Wallace was delighted with Sara’s performance.

She said: “She did fantastically well. She is a very talented girl but doesn’t have that much experience in the ring.

"I had no expectations I just wanted her to go and fight in a higher standard than she has experienced before.

"Not only did she win her fights, she won convincingly against more experienced opponents.

“Sara has been fighting at local level for quite a while and this was her first step up onto an international stage.

"She still has a long way to go if she wants to compete with international athletes but this is a massive step in the right direction. It has been great for her confidence."

Sara also managed to secure a bronze medal in the self defence category, where she competed against adults.

Other medalists from Darlington were Max Tams, 13, Daniel Graham, 12, Viktoras Kostinas, 32, Chris Evans, 44, Louis Welch, 22, Harry Evans, 16, and Leah Moss, 15.

The club is offering free taster sessions for anyone wanting to learn a martial art, at the Edurcation Village.

The classes are open to adults and juniors who want to practice traditional martial arts and improve their fitness, confidence, co-ordination and discipline.

To book a free taster session, call 07901-650-796 or visit chungdokwantkd.co.uk