Taekwondo

Taekwondo, an ancient martial art, originated in Korea and is the country’s national sport. In Korean, “tae” means “to strike with the foot,” “kwon” means “to strike with the fist,” and “do” implies the method of doing so. A survey taken in the early 1990s showed that taekwondo is the world’s most popular martial art given that it is the martial art with the most practitioners around the world. There are a few types of the sport with varying taekwondo techniques. The World Taekwondo Federation and the International Taekwon-do Federation define the globe’s taekwondo techniques and appropriate taekwondo equipment. There are also variations between the traditional martial art and the sport martial art. The traditional art was developed by the Korean militia in the early 1950s and has remained largely unchanged, whereas the sport variety focuses on speed and competition with measurable and valuable results.

The level at which your taekwondo techniques fall and the taekwondo equipment you use can be identified by the color of the belt you wear around your waist. A junior practitioner will make his way through nine “color” belts, starting with a white belt and receiving stripes of the upcoming color as he nears that rank. The tenth level, sometimes called a “deputy” belt, is a black belt with a red stripe, red being the color that directly precedes a black belt. Once you have attained black belt status, you are considered a senior in taekwondo. Seniors graduate through nine levels of black belts, referred to as varying degrees, as in a “third degree black belt.” Dedicated practitioners can become official students of taekwondo if they wish to someday teach taekwondo techniques. This often involves submitting written work like a formal research paper, as well as very strict mental and physical discipline. Finally, you may reach the highest rank after scaling all forms of taekwondo equipment, which is that of an instructor.

Sports-oriented taekwondo techniques involve competitions focused on the practitioners’ abilities to spar with each other, break materials like boards and bricks, complete various patterned exercises and defend themselves against their instructor or another practitioner. The Olympic taekwondo competition, which follows the guidelines as set by the World Taekwondo Federation, only tests sparring abilities. Sparring involves a full-contact sporting event that takes place on a square sized eight meters in height and length, with three rounds separated by one minute rest breaks in between. Generally, points are awarded based on the skills displayed as seen by judges, but new technology is allowing practitioners to receive points electronically as sensed by electrodes within their protective gear. Like most sports, this ancient martial art is evolving over time and is sure to prove dynamic in years to come.