News Archive - 2006
Isle of Man Recognised by WTF - December
Grading Success for Students - December
Olympic Style Training Day - November
IOMTKD 2006 Championship - October
Successful Trip to North-West Open - September
Isle of Man Recognised by WTF - 13th December 2006
The Isle of Man has been approved as an associate member of the World Taekwondo Federation. It was accepted at a WTF council meeting held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam earlier this year.
The Isle of Man was approved as a full member in the Oceania region, along with Zambia and Kiribati.
WTF Taekwondo is a full Olympic sports martial art from Korea with self defence applications and is represented here by the Isle of Man Taekwondo Association which has been working towards membership for more than 12 months.
Director of the Isle of Man Taekwondo Association and senior instructor, Richard Halsall (3rd Dan Black Belt), explained: 'I was attending the World Championships in Madrid last year, with another of our directors, Jerry Carter, where we met with some of the senior figures in the Taekwondo world. They encouraged us to begin the process of seeking membership, which primarily required us to establish the Isle of Man's status as a nation independent of Great Britain or the UK to the WTF Council.'
Returning to the Island to prepare their case, the Isle of Man Taekwondo Association appealed to then Chief Minister, Donald Gelling for assistance.
'I was only too pleased to help from the start,' said the ex-Chief Minister, 'and I am delighted that, once again, the Isle of Man should gain recognition on the world sporting stage.'
Richard Halsall continues: 'WTF Council membership is significant for the Island at two levels. First, it allows the Isle of Man to select its own teams for international competition, which provides a fantastic opportunity for our rapidly developing younger players,' explains Richard, 'but secondly, it also means the Isle of Man can become a host nation for certain levels of international tournament, which provides real tourism benefits for the Island.'
Plans are already underway to host a domestic international in the Isle of Man during 2007.
Isle of Man Courier, 14th December 2006
Grading Success for Students - 9th December 2006
A large number of students from both the Douglas and St. John's clubs took part in a pre-Christmas grading at the National Sports Centre. The day incorporated a forms competition as well as the formal grading exercises. All the students were successful and moved forward to the next belt. This was the first grading carried out by Master Gun Lee.
The picture is of some of the successful Douglas members after they had been presented with their new belts.
Other images from this event can be found in the image gallery.
Olympic Style Training Day - 26th November 2006
A Taekwondo Olympic Sport Training Day was held at the National Sports Centre. Guest instructor was Master Peter Hankin (5th dan) of Total Taekwondo, Liverpool. Members from both the Douglas and St. John's clubs turned out in large numbers for sessions covering fitness, paddle work, sparring and ring craft.
Some images from this event can be found in the image gallery.
IOMTKD 2006 Championship - 14th October 2006
The Isle of Man Taekwondo Association held its 2006 Championship at the NSC recently with 25 Olympic sport bouts.
The competitors were divided into two teams, red and blue, and were coached by instructors Mark Leslie and David Shefford.
Leslie's team won 14-11 after an exciting day of sport fighting. The winning fighters were Tom Weatherill, David Powell, Leah Morley, Jodi Gush, Siobhan Leonard, Sean Leonard, Nancy Shefford, Melissa Moughtin, William Oates, Katie Meads, Celine Fatout, Alan King, Mark Leslie, Jayne Leslie, Antonia Molyneaux, Sandra Shefford, Jake Burns, Lisa Meads, Bob Gibson and Jerry Carter.
Carter produced the match of the day with a strong comeback against Rod Nielsen.
Nielsen started the bout with a flurry of fast scoring kicks, but Carter maintained his cool and came back to win the bout with his superior level of fitness.
Sadly he picked up an unlucky fracture to his right arm and had to celebrate by getting plastered.
The best newcomer under-14 award went to Georgina Oates and the best over-14 went to Molyneaux. Thanks to Master Gun Lee for refereeing and Derek Baldwin for his first-aid experise.
Isle of Man Courier, 27th November 2006
Successful trip to North-West Open - 17th September 2006
Isle of Man Taekwondo Association students Danny Shefford, David Powell, Rhys Barlow and Jake Burns represented the Island in the Chungdokwan North-West Open in Liverpool recently.
The event consisted of matches for more than 120 players from all over the UK and included a team from Germany.
All four boys produced solid performances in the Olympic-style taekwondo competition.
Jake Burns has successfully crossed over from karate and impressed everyone by stopping his opponent in less than a minute.
The group are hoping to make use of the Island's independent recognition and represent the Isle of Man in international competition.
Isle of Man Courier, 20th November 2006