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Abstract   Taekwondo is a combat sport where the competition is based on weight categories. The aim of the present study was to examine the impact force, the relative impact force, the execution time and the relative execution time, of a roundhouse kick to the chest among three Olympic taekwondo weight categories. Twenty male taekwondo athletes participated in the study, divided in three weight groups: featherweight (n = 7), welterweight (n = 7) and heavyweight (n = 7). ANOVA results showed that there were no differences in impact force between featherweight, welterweight and heavyweight. In contrast, the featherweight group generated more relative impact force than the heavyweight group. The heavyweight group used longer execution time when performing the roundhouse kick than both the other two groups, and had a longer relative execution time than the welterweight group (p < .05). To reduce the body weight immediately before competitions to compete in a lower weight category does not seem a priority option as it will not necessarily improve the performance. Key words: biomechanics, performance, taekwondo, weight, roundhouse kick.