Teenage kicks: golden boy Cook has a fighting chance of Olympic success

A word of advice, said the taxi driver as he dropped us outside a converted warehouse in Ardwick, one of the less salubrious outposts of Manchester: "Don't walk around here afterwards."

Just as well, then, to know that those inside should have no qualms about strolling home alone, as they happen to be among the most fearsome hitmen and women in Britain, the 20-strong national taekwondo squad, who are licensed to give someone a good kicking. All in the name of sport, of course.

Their habitat is the new tae-kwondo academy, a converted warehouse situated among the meaner streets of the city. "We needed somewhere a bit gritty," explained the sport's performance director, Gary Hall. "A bit of spit and sawdust is the atmosphere you want for a combat sport. The players love it. Makes them feel aggressive."

They call it the Feat Factory, an emporium of sweaty endeavour where they live for kicks. Taekwondo, which translates from the Korean as "the way of the hand and the foot", has been steadily getting bigger in Britain since a young girl from Doncaster, Sarah Stevenson, started beating the Asians at their own game. Stevenson, who was fourth in the Sydney Olympics, subsequently became world and European champion in a sport which is an amalgam of karate, kung fu and kick-boxing but has its own distinctive pattern of controlled violence.

Stevenson, 24, still has outstanding Olympic ambitions, but now there is a new kid on the mat, a teenager who has taken the taekwondo worldby storm. Aaron Cook, untilrecently a Dorset schoolboy, has already won a gold medal at international senior level and stood top of the podium in the Australian Youth Olympics six months ago, shortly after his 16th birthday. "He has exceeded all our expectations," says Hall. "He is maturing into an exceptional talent, one of the most exciting 16-year-olds in the world, possibly in any sport."

Cook is the star student at the new academy, where the average age of the squad is 19, under the tutelage of a top Cuban coach, Nelson Miller, who turned the Dutch into Europe's leadingtaekwondo nation, and is one of the phalanx of overseas strategists brought in by UK Sport to hone British sporting talent towards 2012.

"His talent is amazing for someone so young," says Stevenson of the quiet, level-headed lad with a composure and obvious ability well beyond his years.

Unlike Stevenson, who was inspired by Jackie Chan, Cook's martial arts idol is Bruce Lee, though he was prompted to take up taekwondo as a tot by the TV cartoon programme Power Rangers.

He says: "I always wanted to do their moves and kicks so I went down to a local sports hall in Dorchester as a five-year-old, where they had some tae-kwondo sessions. I started doing the light contact stuff, where you don't get knocked out or hurt, but after a while I found I had a natural aptitude for it, took up the full contact side of it and set my heart on going to the Olympics. I used to love football, but taekwondo took over."

His first success was in the European juniors, where he won the gold medal, before moving up to the senior division. After moving to Manchester his education is on hold until after Bei-jing; he has yet to do his GCSEs.

Taekwondo may require the deft footwork of the tango but it is the only sport where a kick in the teeth is not only permitted but positively encouraged, with a hit to the head now worth double the points of one to the torso. Young Cook already has the reputation of being a bit of a knockout king.

"What I love are the speed, the kicks and the fights. I have always enjoyed kicking hard. I was never really tempted to go into any other contact sport like boxing because the thrill for me is the kicking aspect.Basically you have to be an all-round athlete, very flexible. I am probably not flexible enoughat the moment, but we areworking on it."

It is a sport where you can get hurt, even knocked out, but so far he has been relatively injury-free. "I have never been knocked out myself but I have ko'd a few opponents or broken a few of their ribs. It's all part of the sport. They are trying to do the same to me."

Like boxing, you have a red and blue corner and judgeswho award points. The firstfighter to 12 points over three two-minute rounds wins, and before any bout fighters have to cut their toenails to ensure there is no scratching.

There is a similar youthful urbanity about Cook as there is with Lewis Hamilton. Of course, it is far-fetched to label him yet the Hamilton of martial arts, but there is no doubt that he hasthe same drive and determination, as well as the fighting flair, of an Amir Khan.

For a 16-year-old he has been around a fair bit – Europe, the Far East and Australia where, at the Youth Olympics in Melbourne, he beat some of thebest youngsters in the world. He has also floored a few Koreans on their own patch in Seoul. "I don't think the crowd liked it very much."

In the recent senior world championships in Beijing he fought the Iranian who is the reigning world and Olympic champion and lost by only three points. "I actually thought I'd beat him, which gives me great confidence if I should get to Beijing for the Olympics." How-ever, because of his youth, his real goal is London 2012. "There is a chance I'll qualify for Beijing and once I am there I feel I've got the talent to do well, but it would be great experience for London, where I'd love to get a gold medal. And lottery funding is a great help in enabling me to achieve what I want."

In the gym he spars regularly with Stevenson, who made her Olympic debut as a 17-year-old. "It was scary being so young but this does not seem to faze Aaron," she says. Nothing worries him. When the ref says, 'Go', he goes."

Cook's father, a carpenter, and his mother, a care assistant, are moving home from Dorchester to be with him in Manchester. He sees Stevenson not only as a mentor but "a bit of an inspiration," adding: "It's good to have her around because she has been to the Olympics and knows the ropes."

Taekwondo has 200 million practitioners worldwide and some 15,000 competitiveplayers in Britain. One of the biggest boosts for the sport here will be a showcase event at Manchester's MEN arena from 28-30 September, when 130 nations are expected to take part in the world qualifying tournament. Significantly, too, the sport is linking with Manchester City Council to get taekwondo into local schools, one of the reasons being that the taekwondo code obliges all youngsters to show respect to their elders, and to be truthful, neat and clean.

As a growing lad, Cook has to decide which of the two Olympic weights – under 80kg or under 68 kg – he is to compete in. It is tricky, given that he currently weighs 72kg. But whichever he chooses, you can be sure he will be putting his best foot forward. And upwards.

Message from an Icon: Sarah Stevenson

Aaron Cook receives funding through UK Sport's World Class Pathway programme, supported by The National Lottery.

Cook trains at the British Taekwondo Academy in Manchester, a facility which has been supported by The National Lottery.

Manchester will host the World Taekwondo Qualification Tournament in September; the event will be supported by The National Lottery.

Aaron is in a great position of having an air of innocence about him. He is able to go into major competitions without having people know his name and not knowing who the big hitters are, so he can concentrate on his own performance rather than getting worried if he is drawn against a particular fighter with a strong reputation. This was evident at the World Champ-ionships recently, where he was drawn against the Olympic champion and put up such a good fight he came within three points of him.

Since the sport relocated to Manchester where the National Academy has been created, I train with Aaron on a daily basis and can see how he is progressing – he has a great talent for his age and is amazing to watch. He has every chance of competing in Beijing next year, before looking towards London in 2012, where he will be at his peak.

Next year, I would like to see him decide which weight category he wants to compete at then really work hard. I'm in the same situation, in that I'm a light-middleweight and can either lose weight to compete as a lightweight or gain to become a middleweight, and I need to decide which category I have the best chance in, as I look to become Olympic champion in Beijing.

Aaron shouldn't let his age worry him – I was 17 and the youngest member of the team in Sydney in 2000 and finished fourth, losing only in the semi-finals. The advantage Aaron has now is that working as part of a GB squad he will be fully prepared about the conditions he will face and what an Olympics entails – I went in blind to Sydney and was amazed I did so well, but know that I came back with a real hunger to win.

This is all available to Aaron through National Lottery funding invested in tae-kwondo. The sport has progressed and is substantially different than six years ago and having the National Academy is paying dividends as there are 20 of us training on a world-class scale.

Aaron is in such a fortunate position and he has the ability to go from here and achieve great things in his career.

Sarah (above) was fourth at the 2000 Sydney Games and a year later became world champion

I've had a mixed 12 months having come off the high of winning the silver medal at the European Championships last August to having been blighted by injury, and am only now looking at competing for the first time this year at next week's Norwich Union World Trials.

This will be a crucial event as it is the selection for Osaka, and I would only have entered the trials if I believed I could jump far and win.

It was at the Norwich Union International in Birmingham last year that my right ankle first went. We decided to undergo a series of injections to relieve the pain but it became evident that I needed more substantial work so I had an operation to remove damaged scar tissue.

I was at the Olympic Medical Institute in Harrow for a month to rehabilitate, and without the facility and access to medical support services provided by Lottery funding there is no way I would be back competing.

The operation was pretty successful and I returned to training in April but then just six weeks ago I sprained my left ankle. I've been working hard since and feel I am coming through to full fitness.

Having jumped a personal best in last year's trials I'd love to be able to repeat that in Manchester next week. Winning the European silver medal was the highlight of my career. I aim to qualify for the worlds and will go in with confidence. Once there, I aim to win my second majorinternational medal.

July 2006 At the European trials in Manchester, Greg produces a personal best of 8.26m to qualify for the European Championships.

August 2006 He becomes first British male since Lynn Davies in 1969 to make podium for long jump at the Europeans in Gothenburg with a 8.13m jump.

August 2006 At Norwich Union International in Birmingham, retires after two rounds with an injury to his right ankle.

February 2007 Has operation on right ankle and four-week rehabilitation at Olympic Medical Institute in Harrow.

May 2007 Sprains left ankle, during training, resulting in further six weeks' rehabilitation.

Visit the British Taekwondo Control Board website at btcb.org.uk