Steven López

For the American journalist, see Steve Lopez.

Steven López

López in 2011
Personal information
Born	(1978-11-09) November 9, 1978 Nicaragua
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg)
Medal record Men's Taekwondo Representing United States Olympic Games 2000 Sydney – 68 kg 2004 Athens – 80 kg 2008 Beijing – 80 kg World Championships 2001 Jeju Lightweight 2003 Garmisch Welterweight 2005 Madrid Welterweight 2007 Beijing Welterweight 2009 Copenhagen Welterweight World Junior Championships 1996 Barcelona Lightweight Grand Prix 2014 Astana Welterweight 2015 Moscow Welterweight Pan American Games 1999 Winnipeg – 68 kg 2003 Santo Domingo – 80 kg 2015 Toronto – 80 kg Pan American Championships 1994 Heredia – 54kg 1996 Havanna – 63kg 1998 Lima – 63kg

López (right) with his 2000 Olympics gold medal

Steven López (born November 9, 1978) is an American taekwondo competitor, a 2000 and 2004 Olympic gold medalist (in the -68 and -80 kg divisions, respectively) and a 2008 Olympic bronze medalist (again in the -80 kg division) and 4th Dan in taekwondo. In 2001, he won the Lightweight Taekwondo World Championship, and in 2003 he won the Welterweight Taekwondo World Championship which he has since won in 2005, 2007 and 2009 making him the first Taekwondo fighter to win 5 World Championships. With 2 Olympic titles, 5 titles in taekwondo world championships and 1 title in taekwondo world cup he is the most titled champion after Hadi Saei who earns 9 world class titles (two Olympic titles in 2004 and 2008, two world championships titles, four world cup titles and one world Olympic qualification tournament).

Biography

Born in Nicaragua, Lopez moved with his parents to New York City in 1982. In his native country, his father, Julio, worked for the dictator Anastasio Somoza, who was overthrown in 1979 after the Sandinista Revolution. His father took odd jobs to support his family but later relocated to Texas. López first learned the sport of Taekwondo in his garage at the age of five from his father and Jean, his older brother. He is a 1997 graduate of Kempner High School in Sugar Land, Texas where he was voted "most likely to succeed" and was member of the National Honor Society.

López's siblings, Mark, Diana and Jean Lopez (coach), are all USA National Team Members in Taekwondo. His younger siblings, Mark and Diana, also represented the United States at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, marking the first time since 1904 that three siblings have been on the same Olympic team. Both López and siblings, Mark (men's featherweight) and Diana (women's featherweight), made sports history in April 2005 when they all claimed a world championship title at the same event (2005 World Taekwondo Championships) with their oldest brother, Jean, participating in the feat as their coach. Steven Lopez and Diana Lopez both qualified for the 2012 Olympic games in London in July 2012 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO.

On January 2006, López tested positive for a banned substance (L-methamphetamine) which he said came from an over-the-counter vapor inhaler he used. López promptly accepted a three-month suspension and participated in an educational anti-doping program.

López has appeared in People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. In 2012, he participated in Fox's dating game show The Choice.

López is a Roman Catholic who attends St. Theresa Catholic Church in Sugar Land, Texas, and has said his faith has always been a very important part of his life.

Sexual misconduct allegations

Both López and his older brother Jean have been investigated by SafeSport regarding allegations of sexual misconduct. In April 2018, Jean was issued a lifetime ban from all World Taekwondo events due to his investigation. Steven López was banned in September 2018.

On April 25, 2018, the Houston Chronicle reported both brothers are the subject of separate lawsuits filed in Colorado of sexual misconduct involving two female taekwondo athletes. Amber Means Randall says in her lawsuit that López assaulted and harassed her from the time she was 17 years old, and that López engaged in sexual activities with under-age athletes at various international tournaments. The lawsuit also alleges that López raped Randall while she was unconscious at a friend's party in 2008.

Lopez's suspension by SafeSport was overturned in arbitration in December 2018; however, because of the ban by World Taekwondo, López was ineligible for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Career highlights

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Type	Family	Handles wiki table code?†	Responsive/ mobile suited	Start template	Column divider	End template
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Columns	"div col"	Yes	Yes	{{div col}}	–	{{div col end}}
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Flexbox	"flex columns"	No	Yes	{{flex columns}}	–	–
Table	"col"	Yes	No	{{col-begin}}, {{col-begin-fixed}} or {{col-begin-small}}	{{col-break}} or {{col-2}} .. {{col-5}}	{{col-end}}

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External links

• US Olympic Team profile at the Wayback Machine (archived November 21, 2008)
• USA Taekwondo profile
• The Road to Beijing 2008
• Interactive 3D Taekwondo training program, featuring López
• Steven López at TaekwondoData.com