What is Taekwondo?
Taekwondo is a Korean Martial Art which translates roughly as 'the art of hand and foot fighting'. Its origins are 1,000s of years old. Taekwondo emerged in the mid Twentieth Century to become one of the most practised Martial Arts in the World with an estimated 50 million practitioners worldwide. It is renowned for its fast kicking techniques and is practised by men, women and children of all ages and social backgrounds. Taekwondo offers students self defence, physical fitness, artistic expression and sport competition.
The largest and most innovative governing body is the World Taekwondo Federation based in Seoul, Korea, which has developed the competition element, creating a dynamic sport which was first recognized by the International Olympic Committee in 1980.
OLYMPIC SPORT TAEKWONDO
Taekwondo was a demonstration sport at the Olympics in Seoul, Korea (1988), Barcelona (1992) and was first admitted as a permanent sport in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. It was part of the Olympic programme in Athens (2004) and is in the programme for Beijing (2008) and London (2012).
The Olympic competition consists of four weight divisions for men and women.
The two competitors score points by delivering full contact kicks and punches with the players wearing protective body armour and head guards to reduce the risk of injury. Punches are only allowed to the body thus removing the risk of constant blows to the head. The play is continuous, much like boxing, with three two minute rounds officiated by a referee, with points being recorded electronically by corner Judges to enable spectators to follow the score. The rules are constantly under review to improve the sport.