Carolena Jean Carstens Salceda (born January 18, 1996 in
Winfield,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
, United States) is a
taekwondo
''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...
practitioner representing
Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...
. She has dual US / Panamanian citizenship through her father and mother respectively,.
She used to live in
Glen Ellyn, Illinois., but has since moved to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
.
In 2011, Carstens participated at the Pan American Championships, where she won the silver medal in the youth -52 kg category, losing to the American Deireanne Morales in the final.
She subsequently took part in
qualification
Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to:
* Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...
for the
2012 Summer Olympics in November 2011, finishing fourth.
She later received one of four wild card entries for the Olympics as the 13th ranked athlete in the -49 kg category, becoming the first Olympic taekwondo athlete from Panama, and the second youngest Olympian in the country's history. She was the youngest athlete at the 2012 Olympics.
She lost her first contest 7–2 to an eventual finalist, Spaniard
Brigitte Yagüe, and then lost her repechage fight to Mexican
Jannet Alegría by the same score.
She competed for Panama at the
2016 Summer Olympics. She was defeated by
Raheleh Asemani
Raheleh Asemani ( fa, راحله آسمانی, born 21 June 1989) is an Iranian-born taekwondo practitioner who competes internationally for Belgium. She participated at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
She has a history of participating in the Asian g ...
of
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
in the first round. She was the flag bearer for Panama during the closing ceremony.
She competed in the
women's lightweight event at the
2022 World Taekwondo Championships
The 2022 World Taekwondo Championships was the 25th edition of the World Taekwondo Championships and was held at the Centro Acuático CODE Metropolitano, in Guadalajara, Mexico from 13 to 20 November 2022. It was at first scheduled to be held i ...
held in Guadalajara, Mexico.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carstens, Carolena
1996 births
Living people
American sportspeople of Panamanian descent
People with acquired Panamanian citizenship
Panamanian female taekwondo practitioners
Olympic taekwondo practitioners of Panama
Taekwondo practitioners at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Taekwondo practitioners at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Pan American Games competitors for Panama
Taekwondo practitioners at the 2015 Pan American Games
People from Winfield, Illinois
People from Glen Ellyn, Illinois
South American Games gold medalists for Panama
South American Games medalists in taekwondo
Competitors at the 2014 South American Games
Taekwondo practitioners at the 2019 Pan American Games
21st-century American women
21st-century Panamanian women