Jordan Thomas: Former karate world champion announces retirement

Great Britain's former karate world and European champion Jordan Thomas has announced his retirement.

Thomas won European kumite gold at 67kg in Finland in 2014 and added world gold at the same weight in Austria two years later by beating Yves Martial Tadissi.

After failing to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the 32-year-old transferred to the GB Taekwondo World Class Performance Programme.

But he said it is now the right time to call it a day.

"The last few years have been very, very difficult," Thomas told BBC Sport in an exclusive interview.

"I transferred to a new sport, from karate to taekwondo. I was bottom of the pile, learning a new trade and a new skill.

"But I chose to leave because it was time to transition to the next step in my life. I have a daughter, and one more child coming.

"The decision still plays on my mind because I feel capable, but this is the right time."

Thomas followed in the footsteps of his father, William, who was a world karate champion in 1992.

In 2016, Jordan repeated the feat and became the first karate world champion from Great Britain in 12 years.

"When I became a world champion, it wasn't a normal thing to do," he said.

"To be able to replicate what my father did and share that experience in front of him was a huge high for me. I am so proud of that."

Thomas was two seconds away from qualifying for the 2020 Olympics but received a kick to the head during the closing moments of a fight in Paris, which meant he failed to make the GB team.

"Not making the Olympics was very, very difficult," he said. "I wanted to be that person who blamed everybody, but I made a conscious decision to take ownership, to take responsibility for what happened. I'd love to rewrite that story.

"It's very tough mentally and physically to compete at the top. You are under huge pressure. It's high performance and you are working with a team that expect results.

"You live a lifestyle to make that happen."

Thomas has now become a coach and mentor to school children in Hertfordshire.

He runs a karate academy and hopes to use what he learned during his competitive career in the sport to help others.

"The academy is about high performance, we are producing a pathway to elite sport," he explained.

"If they can learn and practice resilience, focus, self-discipline and problem-solving it will boost their confidence.

"If they use these skills every day, they will have world champion lives."