Since competitive taekwondo was listed with the 2000 (Sydney) Olympic Games program, a special attention in the sport science has been given to the sport discipline. The article analyzes the success factors for the 15-17-year-old taekwondokas classified into the anthropometric characteristics, technical and tactical skills and mental fitness related ones. The study was based on a comparative analysis of the Youth Russian Taekwondo Tournament records for the last two years to find correlations of the classified factors with the competitive accomplishments. Anthropometric characteristics were ranked among the key competitive success factors for this age group, whilst the statistical data analysis found insignificant correlations between the technical/ tactical/ mental fitness test rates and the competitive accomplishments. The authors believe that further analyses of the competitive success factors shall give a special attention to the sport-specific perceptions and responses including the anticipatory responses to the pre-attack body language, good timing and killer instincts in response to the opponent`s blunders.
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