Nikola Spajić

Nikola Spajić () is a Serbian para taekwondo practitioner. Competing in the K44 classification, mainly in the −80 kg division, he represents the Serbian national team and Taekwondo Club Kobra. He represented Serbia in the men's −80 kg K44 event at the 2024 Summer Paralympics, finishing fifth. At European level, he won silver at the 2023 European Para Championships in Rotterdam, bronze at the 2024 European Taekwondo Championships in Belgrade and gold at the 2026 European Taekwondo Championships in Munich.

Career

Spajić has appeared in international results records for Serbia since 2017. In 2017, he won a silver medal in the −75 kg K44 event at the African Para Taekwondo Championships in Kigali. The same year, he reached the quarter-finals of the −75 kg K44 event at the World Para Taekwondo Championships in London. He defeated Halil Altuğ Cantürk and Vitalii Nazarenko before losing to Magomedzagir Isaldibirov in the quarter-finals.

In 2018, Spajić reached the semi-finals of the −75 kg K44 event at the European Para Taekwondo Championships in Plovdiv. He defeated Richard Marsicki and Fatih Çelik before losing to Magomedzagir Isaldibirov in the semi-finals. In 2019, he competed in the −75 kg K44 event at the World Para Taekwondo Championships in Antalya, where he lost 17–16 to Azerbaijan's Huseyn Hasanov in the first round. The same season, he won a bronze medal in the −75 kg K44 event at the African Para Taekwondo Championships in Hurghada. At the Asian Para Taekwondo Championships in Amman, he defeated Asadbek Toshtemirov and Huseyn Hasanov before losing to South Korea's Joo Jeong-hun in the quarter-finals.

In 2022, Spajić competed in the −80 kg K44 event at the European Para Taekwondo Championships in Manchester, England. He was eliminated in the quarter-finals after losing 14–0 to Uzbekistan's Asadbek Toshtemirov. In 2023, he won a silver medal in the −80 kg K44 event at the 2023 European Para Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He defeated Ukraine's Vladyslav Nechai 17–3 in the quarter-finals and Great Britain's Joseph Lane 14–11 in the semi-finals before losing 10–9 to Azerbaijan's Abulfaz Abuzarli in the final. The same year, he reached the quarter-finals of the −80 kg K44 event at the World Para Taekwondo Championships in Veracruz, Mexico. He defeated Turkey's Oktay Atalay 29–9 before losing 20–8 to Asadbek Toshtemirov.

In 2024, Spajić won the −80 kg K44 event at the European Qualification Tournament for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games in Sofia, Bulgaria, thereby qualifying for the 2024 Summer Paralympics. He defeated Ukraine's Vladyslav Nechai 24–9 in the semi-finals and Great Britain's Joseph Lane 30–7 in the final. The same year, he won a bronze medal in the −80 kg K44 event at the European Para Taekwondo Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. He defeated Oktay Atalay 28–15 in the quarter-finals before losing 23–15 to Joo Jeong-hun in the semi-finals.

At the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, Spajić represented Serbia in the men's −80 kg K44 event. He defeated Brazil's Claro Lopes de Oliveira 20–5 in the round of 16 to reach the quarter-finals, where he lost 8–1 to Joo Jeong-hun. In the repechage, he defeated Azerbaijan's Abulfaz Abuzarli 11–9 to reach the bronze medal contest. He lost the bronze medal match 29–6 to Iran's Alireza Bakht and finished fifth.

In 2026, Spajić won the gold medal in the −80 kg K44 event at the European Para Taekwondo Championships in Munich, Germany. He defeated Georgia's David Makadze in the quarter-finals, Croatia's Marko Gračak in the semi-finals and Georgia's Lasha Tkemaladze in the final, each by 2–0, to become European champion.

External links

• Nikola Spajić at TaekwondoData