Beth Munro: I thought I was too placid to be a fighter

Former mental health officer Beth Munro thought she was too placid to be a fighter but is now targeting a taekwondo gold at her second Paralympics.

While working at universities, Munro was encouraged by a student who played wheelchair basketball to attend an event, where she ended up being scouted by Disability Sport Wales for javelin.

From there, she was persuaded to try taekwondo, and despite an initial reluctance, it ignited a spark that she hadn’t felt since she had played netball growing up.

“I told my coach I was too placid to ever be a fighter,” she said. “He persuaded me to try it and it just escalated from there.

“I took the bull by the horns - I started properly with GB in March 2021 and six months later, I had won Paralympic silver.

“I do look back and have to pinch myself when I say it out loud - because it’s like ‘Woah, that actually happened in my life’ - but it’s amazing and the journey has been very good.”

But without the Covid pandemic, things could have been different for the 31-year-old from Liverpool.

While many were at home doing quizzes on Zoom, Munro discovered that she could practice taekwondo on video calls.

This new ‘work from home’ setup for Munro meant that the taekwondo took precedence over javelin to avoid spears ending up in her living room walls.

Had the Paralympics taken place the year they were scheduled to in 2020, Munro would not have even been introduced to the combat sport.

Instead, Munro secured ParalympicsGB’s first ever Para taekwondo medal when she won silver in Tokyo in 2021.

“It’s been a crazy fast-paced journey from having never done taekwondo before to getting to the heights I have reached already,” she added.

“The Paralympics in Tokyo was the first ever taekwondo competition I did with four fights in one day - and I managed to make it to the final.

“I’m a firm believer that things fell into place so well, it really was perfect timing. Had Covid not happened, I would never have made those Games.”

While grateful for how things worked out three years ago, Munro is wanting to go one better this time and is excited for the challenge ahead.

“It’s definitely a boost to be ranked number one,” she added. “But you go in on the day and the ranking doesn’t mean anything, you just have to be the best.

“I have some butterflies in my belly, but I’m mostly excited. I’m looking forward to the atmosphere of the village and having spectators there which will be electrifying.

“More so, because all of my family are coming to watch me. I’ve got 60 to 70 of my closest friends and family coming to cheer me on, which is just amazing.”

As she fights at a Grand Palais filled with her nearest and dearest wearing t-shirts with her face on them, Munro will reflect on how it is possible to be both placid and a fighter.