Aaron Cook, who was controversially left out of the Great Britain squad for the London 2012 Olympic Games, is happy to have put the incident behind him, and to be representing Moldova at international level.
The three-time European champion won a bronze medal in his first major competition for his new country at the world championship in Russia in May, and is currently ranked second in the world.
"I had to move on. Now it is about looking at the future, not worrying about the past. Of course, I was absolutely devastated at the time, but now I am fighting for Moldova, I am extremely happy," said Cook.
Prior to switching allegiance, the 24-year-old had for the previous two-and-a-half years been fighting for the Isle of Man, with whom he won gold in the 2014 European championship.
As well as chasing a medal at Baku 2015, Cook is looking for ranking points to represent his newly-adopted country at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
He still has emotional links with the British Taekwondo team, however. His girlfriend, Bianca Walkden, is one of the favourites in Baku after winning gold for Great Britain at the world championship.
Asked whether he would feel strange on top of a podium without the British national anthem playing, Cook said: "Yes, of course. My girlfriend won the world championships a couple of weeks ago and the national anthem was going up and it was emotional for her and me. I was crying for her because she won.
"The national anthem doesn’t really mean that much to me any more. I am fighting for myself when I am there. I have found it very easy. It's exactly the same mat, the same arena. It is just that I have different letters on the back of my suit. Moldova have given me all the support I need, so I am extremely grateful for everything they have done."
No. 1 seed Cook and Britain's Lutalo Muhammad are in the same pool and could meet in the semi final on Thursday 18 June.
Bütün xəbərlər Facebook səhifəmizdə
USD
EUR
GBP
RUB