OLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Steven Lopez (Sugar Land, Texas) and his
sister Diana Lopez (Sugar Land, Texas) captured the final two spots at
the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Taekwondo on Friday at the U.S.
Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Steven defeated Antony
Graf (Miami, Fla.), 5-3, in the men's light/welterweight finals, while
Diana beat Nia Abdallah (Houston, Texas) in overtime to claim the
women's bantam/featherweight title. They join brother Mark Lopez
(Sugar Land, Texas) and Charlotte Craig (Murrieta, Calif.) on the U.S.
team that will compete at the World Olympic Qualification Tournament
in Manchester, England, Sept. 28-30. Mark Lopez and Craig claimed
their respective divisions on Thursday.

"It was an exciting final match," said Steven Lopez of the finals,
where Graf jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the early going. "I give all
credit to Tony. He's a great competitor. I knew he was going to come
out strong. It was the first round, so I knew I had a lot of time.
Little by little, I kind of broke him down. He came out strong, that's
all. I came out a little lackadaisical, and he woke me up. I need a
little bit of excitement, I guess."

Lopez credited his mental toughness for pulling him through.

"That's the edge I have over most athletes," he said. "Mentally, I
never break down. I don't let myself. A lot of times when you're in a
high-pressure situation, the first thing you do is kind of freak out.
I was always composed. I always knew this would be my day. I've been
in this situation before. I'm very experienced."

In a rematch of the 2004 Olympic Trials, the women's bantam/feather
division came down to Diana Lopez vs. Abdallah. Abdallah won the 2004
Trials and went on to win the silver medal in the Athens Olympic
Games. In Friday's rematch, Lopez won a hard fought 2-1 decision in
the opening match of the double elimination event. Abdallah then
defeated Christina Johnson (Rockville, Md.) in the elimination bracket
to set up a finals matchup with Lopez.

In the finals, Lopez jumped to a 3-0 lead only to see Abdallah come
storming back to hold a 5-3 advantage in the waning seconds of the
final round. After a point was deducted from Abdallah for stepping out
of bounds, Lopez delivered a kick with three seconds remaining to knot
the score at 4-4 and send the match into a sudden death overtime
period. Then, 0:47 into the overtime stanza, Lopez scored the decisive
point to clinch the win.

"The whole day, I felt really on," said Diana Lopez. "I've been
waiting for this rematch for three years now."

On being down late in the final match, Lopez said: "I wasn't anxious
at all. I've matured a lot. Three years ago, I probably would have
gotten all flustered, but I kept my composure. I knew I was going to
take it. Nia is a tough fighter. She'll do anything to try to make a
point. She adjusted, and I just adjusted to what she was doing."

With the victories, the Lopezes remain on track to become the first
three siblings to qualify for the same Summer Olympic sport in the
same year since 1904. They will need a top-three finish at the World
Olympic Qualifier to earn nomination to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team.

"It's incredible," said Diana Lopez. "Words can't explain what I'm
feeling right now. It's just a dream come true and one step closer to
being on the Olympic Team."

"It's a dream come true," added Steven Lopez. "This is the first step.
I'm very happy that we all performed well. We still have to do a job.
I'm confident that we'll go out there and do our job."