Nataša Vezmar (born October 24, 1976, in

Bjelovar Bjelovar (, , Czech language, Czech: ''Bělovar'' or ''Bělovár,'' Kajkavian dialect, Kajkavian: ''Belovar,'' Latin: ''Bellovarium'') is a city in central Croatia. In the Demographics of Croatia, 2021 census, its population was 36,316 . It is ...

) is a Croatian

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

practitioner, who competed in the women's heavyweight category. One of Croatia's most prominent sporting figures in her decade, Vezmar held three European titles in the over-72 kg division, claimed two medals (a silver and a bronze) at the

World Taekwondo Championships The World Taekwondo Championship is held every two years by World Taekwondo. In addition to the kyorugi (full contact fighting) Championships, there are also Para World Championships as well as Poomsae and Para Poomsae Championships held every ...

(1997 and 2003), and represented her nation

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

in two editions of the Olympic Games (2000 and 2004). Vezmar also trained full-time for TK Metalac in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, under head coach and master Ivica Klaić. Vezmar made her official debut at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, where she competed in the women's over-67 kg class. Seeded second and one of the fighters predicted to get an Olympic medal, Vezmar started her fight with an impressive 7–4 victory over Spain's Ireane Ruíz, before losing the semifinal to her Russian opponent Natalia Ivanova. In the repechage, Vezmar thrashed Mounia Bourguigue of Morocco at 4–1 to mount her chances of an Olympic medal. In the bronze medal match, Vezmar scored a 4–4 draw in the first two rounds against

Dominique Bosshart Dominique Bosshart (born October 7, 1977) is a Canadian taekwondo athlete. She was Canada's only taekwondo competitor during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where she won a bronze medal in the heavyweight division ( + 67 kg). She compet ...

, but her Canadian opponent responded with a feverish kicking exchange at the end to seal a seamless 11–8 victory, relegating Vezmar to fourth. In 2003, Vezmar picked up a silver medal in the same category at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; ) is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the Oberbayern region, which borders Austria. Nearby is Germa ...

, following a tough 1–0 defeat to South Korea's Youn Hyun-jung. At the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, Vezmar qualified for her second Croatian squad in the women's heavyweight class (+67 kg). Earlier in the process, she defeated Great Britain's

Sarah Stevenson Sarah Diana Stevenson (born 30 March 1983) is a British taekwondo athlete. A world champion in 2001, Stevenson won her country's first ever Olympic medal in taekwondo, a bronze, at the 2008 Games in Beijing, her third Olympic competition for ...

in the final to secure her place on the Croatian team at the European Olympic Qualification Tournament in

Baku, Azerbaijan Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

. Hoping to improve her fourth-place finish from Sydney, Vezmar moved directly into the quarterfinals with a first round bye, but rounded off a dismal display in a startling 4–5 defeat to 16-year-old Jordanian teen

Nadin Dawani Nadin Dawani (born 20 April 1988) is a Jordanian taekwondo practitioner who competes in the 67 kg category. She was born in Amman, Jordan on 20 April 1988. She became the first Jordanian Taekwondo player to be named Asian Champion after winni ...

. With her opponent losing the semifinal to France's

Myriam Baverel Myriam Baverel (born 14 January 1981) is a French taekwondo practitioner and Olympic medalist. She competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, where she received a silver medal in the +67 kg class.

, Vezmar failed to slip into the repechage bracket for a chance of an Olympic bronze medal.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vezmar, Natasa 1976 births Living people Croatian female taekwondo practitioners Olympic taekwondo practitioners for Croatia Taekwondo practitioners at the 2000 Summer Olympics Taekwondo practitioners at the 2004 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Bjelovar European Taekwondo Championships medalists World Taekwondo Championships medalists