Arlene Limas (born February 9, 1966) is an American

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

practitioner and multiple international gold medalist of Mexican and Polish descent.

Early life and education

Limas graduated with honors from

Whitney Young Magnet High School Whitney M. Young Magnet High School (locally known simply as Whitney Young) is a public magnet high school and middle school located in the Near West Side neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Whitney Young is operated by the Chicago ...

in Chicago and studied political science at

De Paul University DePaul University is a private university, private, Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-centu ...

in 1990.

Career

Limas made history when she became the first American to win a gold medal at the 24th Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea in taekwondo, which made its Olympic debut as an exhibition sport. She is a member of the Taekwondo Hall of Fame. Limas was inducted June 20, 2019 into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame located in

Troy, Michigan Troy is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, United States. Its population was 87,294 at the 2020 U.S. census, making Troy the most populous city in the county and the 13th most-populous municipality in the state. Troy is a northern suburb of Me ...

Career achievements

* 1986 - World University Championships, Gold Medalist (Berkeley, California) * 1987 - National Championships Gold Medalist * 1988 - Olympic Team Member (Tae Kwon Do) * 1988 - Olympic Gold Medalist - Welterweight Division, Seoul, Korea * 1990 - National Championships Gold Medalist * 1989,1990 - Olympic Sports Festival Captain (West Team) and gold medalist * 1990 - Pan-Am Tae Kwon Do Championships (Puerto Rico) Gold Medalist * 1990 - World University Games (Spain) Team Captain & Gold Medalist * 1990 - World Cup Gold Medalist (Spain) * 1991 - National Championships Welterweight Gold Medalist * 1991 - Olympic Festival Gold Medalist * 1991 - World Championships Gold Medalist (Athens, Greece) * 1989 - National Championships Gold Medalist * 1998 - U.S. Team Trials Silver Medalist * 1998 - Olympic Weight Division Qualifier Gold Medalist * 1998 - Choson Cup Olympic Weight Division Invitational Gold Medalist, (Australia) * 1998 - Pan Am Games Team Trials Silver Medalist * 1999 - U.S. Team Trials Gold Medalist

Career honors

* 2007 - Taekwondo Hall of Fame * 1987 - Collegiate Athlete of the Year * 1989 - March of Dimes Amateur Athlete of the Year * 1989 - Named "Woman of Vision" - Latin Women's Organization for Business Professional Involvement * 1991 - U. S. Taekwondo Union "Woman of the Year" * 2000 - Selected as one of the top TKD fighters of the 20th century by TKD Times and Martial Arts Illustrated * 2011 - Owner and founder of "Power Kix Martial Arts" Tae Kwon Do studio in

Stafford, Virginia Stafford is a census-designated place (listed as Stafford Courthouse) in and the county seat of Stafford County in the northern part of the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. The population of Stafford County as of the 2010 United States Census w ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Limas, Arlene American female taekwondo practitioners American sportspeople of Mexican descent 1966 births Living people Sportspeople from Chicago Whitney M. Young Magnet High School alumni DePaul University alumni Place of birth missing (living people) Taekwondo practitioners at the 1988 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in taekwondo World Taekwondo Championships medalists American people of Polish descent 21st-century American women