East Kilbride taekwondo starlet set for World Junior Championships in Bulgaria

East Kilbride taekwondo starlet Neve McPhillie will jet out to Bulgaria this week to take part in the Junior World Taekwondo Championships.

The 16-year-old will travel to Sofia with the GB team on Sunday and spend this week training and acclimatising before she fights in her under-59kg Junior category on Saturday.

In order to be selected for the World Taekwondo Championships, Neve has successfully competed in a number of International competitions this year, taking silver in both the Spanish G2 Open and the Swedish G2 Open.

She also attended an international training camp in Mexico in June in preparation of her selection to represent Team GB, securing her place on the World Championship team.

Proud coach, Master Jonathan McDade, is thrilled to see his student get such an opportunity.

He said: “At only 16 years of age, Neve has become a very established, proficient, and experienced young athlete with ambition to continuously improve.

“She has a desire to win and continues to work towards her dream of representing GB in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

“We are delighted to have one of our high performance athletes head out there this week.”

Neve has trained with the town’s Elite Martial Arts Academy since she was 4 years old, and is now the most decorated athlete within the club.

Neve was part of the GB Cadet National Team and quickly progressed, being one of the few athletes, to be offered a place on the GB Advanced Development Squad and was awarded with the Advanced Development Player of the Year last month.

Neve also spends her time training here at Elite with her club coaches Jonathan McDade and Jennifer Eden, and with the Advanced Development Squad training alongside some of the GB Olympians.

Neve has taken part in