The 26-year-old from Doncaster has been out of action since winning her medal with an ankle injury.

 

Stevenson, a member of the All Stars Taekwondo Club, Doncaster, has undergone surgery on the ankle and will be looking to test her fitness as she prepares for the World Championships in Copenhagen in October.

 

Stevenson will be joined by a reduced team in the Azerbaijan capital of Baku, with Caroline Fisher and Sophie Threlfall making up the women’s team while Craig Brown, Davoud Etmanani, Joel Jackson and Martin Stamper will be competing for the men.

 

Stevenson said: “It’s been frustrating having been injured since Beijing but I’m now just looking forward to getting back in to action.

 

"I’m not expecting too much from myself but am really using these Championships to test out the ankle and see where I am in terms of fitness.”

 

Gary Hall, the performance director of Sport Taekwondo UK, said: “Although the rules allow us to send five men and five women we have deliberately chosen to send reduced squads as we are viewing these Championships as an ideal opportunity to give the athletes good competitive experience rather than fighting for medals.

 

“It’s going to be a busy summer for us with training camps in China and Korea scheduled for July, he second British International Taekwondo Open being staged in Manchester in August followed by the World’s in October.

 

"With such a busy schedule we are giving our athletes the best chance to prepare fully for these competitions and this week should hopefully provide a great opportunity for the team to feel their way back into competition.”