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Pan American Taekwondo Championships

PATU’s senior continental taekwondo championships, graded G4 for World Taekwondo’s world and Olympic rankings; the 2026 edition was held in Rio de Janeiro in May.
✓ Last reviewed: October 2026
OrganiserPATU, with the host national federation as organising committee[3]
GradeG4 — World Ranking and Olympic Ranking (senior)[3]
DisciplinesKyorugi, poomsae, para taekwondo kyorugi and poomsae[2]
Weight categories8 men’s and 8 women’s (kyorugi, 2026)[3]
Most recentRio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 2026[4]

What are the Pan American Taekwondo Championships?

The Pan American Taekwondo Championships are the senior continental championships of taekwondo in the Americas, contested by national teams. PATU’s 2026 outline calls them the “PAN AMERICAN TAEKWONDO SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS”; its calendar lists the 2026 edition as the “Campeonato Panamericano Adultos G4 – 2026”.[3][2] The centre of the event is kyorugi, Olympic-style sparring, in eight weight categories for men (from under 54 kg to over 87 kg) and eight for women (from under 46 kg to over 73 kg), fought as a single-elimination tournament over the best of three two-minute rounds.[3] Poomsae (forms) and para taekwondo championships in kyorugi and poomsae are held at the same venue in the same week, each listed by PATU as a separate G4 championship.[2] Pan American Open events and age-group championships are separate competitions on PATU’s calendar.[2]

Who organizes the Pan American Taekwondo Championships?

The Pan American Taekwondo Union (PATU), which describes itself as one of the five continental unions recognised by World Taekwondo, the world governing body.[1] The championships are run under World Taekwondo’s rules: the 2026 outline states that “The latest updated WT Competition Rules shall apply”.[3] A national federation acts as organising committee; for 2026 the outline names PATU as organiser and the Brazilian Taekwondo Confederation (CBTKD) as organising committee.[3] The CBTKD and PATU broadcast the 2026 championships on their own channels.[5]

When and where are they held?

The championships have been held in May in each edition on PATU’s online calendar, which begins in 2022, and have moved between host countries. The most recent completed edition was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the Arena Carioca 1 in the Olympic Park. PATU lists the senior championships on 7–8 May 2026, with the kyorugi on 8 May, para taekwondo poomsae on 7 May and para taekwondo kyorugi on 10 May.[2][3] Reports from Brazil give slightly different opening dates: a São José dos Campos municipal report places the competition its athletes took part in, poomsae and kyorugi among them, between 6 and 8 May, and the Brazilian Paralympic Committee placed the para events on 9–10 May.[6][5] As retrieved on 1 October 2026, PATU’s calendar names no host for the next edition.[7]

SeasonPool / FormatHost cities
2026Senior G4: kyorugi, poomsae, para taekwondoRio de Janeiro, Brazil — Arena Carioca 1, Olympic Park; 7–8 May 2026 (para taekwondo kyorugi 10 May)
2024Senior: kyorugi, poomsae, para taekwondoRio de Janeiro, Brazil — Arena Carioca 1; poomsae 1 May, kyorugi 2 May, para taekwondo 3 May 2024
2022XXII Campeonato Panamericano (kyorugi, poomsae)Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, 2–5 May 2022

Editions from 2022, as PATU’s online calendar lists them: the format column gives the edition number where PATU’s documents print one; hosts and dates as PATU lists them.[8][9]

Since when do they exist?

PATU’s pages, as retrieved, give no year for the first Pan American Taekwondo Championships, and no primary source for the first edition could be retrieved. PATU’s own documents do number the 2022 championships in Punta Cana: their official documents are titled “XXll Campeonato Panamericano de Taekwondo”, the twenty-second.[8] PATU’s calendar then shows senior championships in Rio de Janeiro in 2024 and 2026.[9][2] The founding of PATU itself is a separate date, which its pages do not give.[1]

How do athletes qualify?

Entry is by national team, with no prior qualifying event. PATU’s 2026 outline states: “Each National Team may enter one (1) male athlete and one (1) female athlete per weight category to compete in the 2026 Pan American Senior Championships, in addition to athletes qualified through Wild Card (up to a maximum of four).” It adds that “Wild Cards are personal to the athlete who earned them and are non-transferable.”[3] Each athlete must hold the nationality of the participating team, hold a taekwondo black belt and a valid WT Global Athlete License for 2026, and be 17 years or older (born in 2009 or earlier).[3] The regular entry deadline was 9 April 2026 and the late deadline 27 April 2026; registration is through World Taekwondo’s online platform.[3][2]

Why do they matter?

The measurable proxy is ranking value. PATU’s 2026 outline grades the senior kyorugi championships “World Ranking and Olympic Ranking – G4 (Senior)”, so results count toward World Taekwondo’s world ranking and its Olympic ranking.[3] A report on the 2026 edition by the Brazilian sports site Tem Futebol described it as a competition that counts points in the world ranking that qualifies for the Los Angeles 2028 Games.[10] World Taekwondo’s qualification system for Los Angeles 2028 could not be retrieved, so how ranking points translate into Olympic places is not stated here. No prize money is published in the 2026 outline.[3]

Who competes?

Senior national teams of PATU’s member national associations, which PATU numbers at forty-five.[1] The official complete results of the 2026 senior kyorugi, dated Friday 8 May 2026, list entries by weight category and a medal standing by nation, but print no total of nations or athletes.[4] Alongside the senior championships, para taekwondo athletes compete in their own G4 championships in functional classification categories; the Brazilian Paralympic Committee reported that Brazil entered 19 para athletes in 2026.[5][2] Cadets, juniors and under-21 athletes compete in Pan American Open categories held in the same week.[10]

References

  1. PATU — Nosotros (About). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  2. PATU — Events, November 2024 to October 2026 (past events list). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  3. PATU — Outline, Pan American Taekwondo Senior Championships 2026, Kyorugi (English). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  4. PATU — Complete results, Pan American Taekwondo Championship 2026 G4 Senior. Accessed 2026-10-01.
  5. Comitê Paralímpico Brasileiro — “Seleção Brasileira de taekwondo disputa Campeonato Pan-Americano no Rio de Janeiro com 19 atletas”, 8 May 2026. Accessed 2026-10-01.
  6. Prefeitura de São José dos Campos — “São José é destaque no Pan-Americano de Taekwondo”, 13 May 2026. Accessed 2026-10-01.
  7. PATU — Events (upcoming, 2026). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  8. PATU — 2022 Pan American Taekwondo Championship (Kyorugi), Punta Cana (event page). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  9. PATU — Events calendar from January 2024 (senior championships, Rio de Janeiro 2024). Accessed 2026-10-01.
  10. Tem Futebol — “Pan-americano de taekwondo começa nesta quinta no Rio de Janeiro”, May 2026. Accessed 2026-10-01.