Two DMV athletes represented Team USA at the 2026 World Taekwondo Junior Championships. Sophy Cutter of Alexandria and Ben Peters of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, traveled to the competition, held April 12 to 17 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Both athletes earned their Team USA positions by winning the USA Taekwondo Team Trials in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in January. They train at Yoo’s Martial Arts in Alexandria; instructor Jonathan Yoo was also named to the USA Taekwondo national coaching staff for the event.
Sophy Cutter
This was Cutter’s third appearance at the World Championships. She’s a three-time USA Taekwondo National Team member and a Pan American champion. Cutter has also been named team captain of the U.S. Junior women’s team.
Cutter began training at Yoo’s Martial Arts at age 3. “It’s an honor to represent Team USA again and to lead this team,” she said in a release. She lost her opening match 2–1 to host country Uzbekistan.
Ben Peters
Peters is also a three-time USA Taekwondo National Team member. He previously represented Team USA at the 2023 and 2025 World Championships. He is also a three-time World Open champion.
“Competing at Worlds is always the goal, and earning that spot again means everything,” said Peters. He advanced to the round of 32 and lost 2–1 to Canada.
Feature image of Sophy Cutter and Ben Peters with instructor Jonathan Yoo courtesy Yoo’s Martial Arts
