Jade Jones: Britain's headhunter eyeing history through lessons of defeat 

When do you learn more, in victory or defeat?

For British taekwondo star Jade Jones, who seemed for so long almost unbeatable in her sport, the lessons learned over the decade since she became the first British Olympic champion in taekwondo have given her a unique perspective on the question.

Jones, whose nickname is 'the headhunter', became one of the heroes of her home Games in London, as she fought to victory to make history in 2012.

Then four years later, she was at it again, winning her second Olympic title at Rio 2016.

However, looking back on those victories, Jones’s experiences at those Games couldn’t have been more different.

“Still to this day, it’s my favourite moment and it will be hard to beat,” she said in 2022, looking back a decade after her first Olympic win.

But the tone was different when she reflected on her quest to become a double Olympic champion four years later in Brazil.

“Rio 2016 was totally different,” she shared. “The pressure was on. I didn’t want to be a flash in the pan, or someone who fluked the win in London. It was more of a relief than joy when I won in Rio.”

With both of those Games ending with Jones on the top of the podium, joy and relief were not the only emotions awaiting the athlete on her Olympic journey.

The hardest lesson was yet to be learned: how would she deal with defeat?

Unfortunately for Jones, that question was put to the test at the Tokyo 2020 Games where, after struggling with the repercussions of the landscape of COVID-19 in the lead-up to the Olympics, the Flint-raised star suffered a shock first-round defeat to Kimia Alizadeh of the Refugee Olympic Team.

“I was too hungry, I was scared to lose,” a deflated Jones, who had broken down in tears after her surprise loss, said at the time. “But I’ve learned from that now.”

Jade Jones: rebuilding a legend

It would be easy to imagine that the devastation of an Olympic loss - especially for someone so used to winning - could have an enduring negative effect on their psyche.

But perhaps for Jones, the taste of defeat in Tokyo can spur her on in her mission for sporting immortality.

In February 2022, she returned to competition to win gold in her first tournament back in action at the President’s Cup in Albania.

Since then, she has slowly but surely rebuilt herself, with notable victories that include gold at the World Taekwondo Grand Prix in May, where she beat Iran's world champion Nahid Kiyanichandeh in the -57kg final.

Losses have also been experienced, with a quarter-final exit at the World Taekwondo Championships in Baku a setback for the 30-year-old.

But there’s a fire in Jones, who admits she’s “obsessed with winning”, that burns brightly as she battles for a third Olympic gold at Paris 2024.

And this fire is fuelled by the joys of victories but also the devastation of defeat.

“It was good to take a step back after Tokyo, even more so when it didn’t go so well,” Jones said, looking back on the six-month break she took after losing her title as reigning Olympic champion.

“But it made me realise how much I love the sport and why I do it.”

Jade Jones: Passing on the legacy to the next generation

The years Jones has stayed at the top have made her a legend of the sport.

And while now may not be the time to sit back and smell the flowers, she does allow herself the opportunity to reflect on the impact her victories have had on taekwondo in Great Britain.

“So many more girls are getting into sport now and into taekwondo,” she said to PA Media after receiving an OBE from King Charles at Windsor Castle in 2022.

“The more women and girls see this, the more natural it becomes, so I hope the fact that I received my OBE today will inspire more girls to pursue martial arts.”

But you get the feeling that there’s more to come from Britain’s most decorated taekwondo star, despite the influx of younger, hungry fighters taking aim at taekwondo gold at the Olympics.

“I don’t know, I’ve never had to do it before,” Jones reacted after being asked straight after her Tokyo 2020 defeat how she would react to the loss.

Her answer now is as clear as day.

“I’m hoping to make history by winning that third gold medal,” she says.