Watson claims Aust first taekwondo medal

Janine Watson has won Australia's first Paralympic taekwondo medal, claiming bronze in the women's K44 +58kg.

Tokyo is taekwondo's debut at the Paralympics and Watson beat Ukraine's Yuliya Lypetska 63-0 in a bronze medal match.

Watson lost her round of 16 match to Morocco's Rajae Akermach 8-6.

But the Queenslander shrugged off her early loss to reel off three consecutive victories and earn a medal on debut.

Watson's round of 16 loss meant she had to go through the repechage quarter-final, where she was well on top of Turkey's Seyma Emeksiz Bacaksiz, leading 36-2 when their bout was stopped in the second of three rounds.

The 40-year-old then beat Japan's Shoko Ota 32-12 in the repechage semi-final to give herself a shot at a medal - which she ultimately claimed comprehensively.

Watson, who has multiple sclerosis, is Australia's first athlete in Para-taekwondo.