Taekwondo
Overview
Taekwondo is a combat sport and martial art systematized in the mid-20th century on the basis of the traditional martial arts of the Republic of Korea. It centers on techniques for subduing an opponent with bare hands and bare feet; "taekwon (跆拳)" refers to the techniques of kicking with the feet and striking with the fists, while "do (道)" means the path of cultivating one's character through training in those techniques. Since being adopted as an official event at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, it has established itself as a global sport with tens of millions of practitioners in some 200 countries around the world.
Main Content
History and Establishment of the Name
The roots of taekwondo trace back to the traditional martial arts of the Korean Peninsula, such as taekkyeon, subakhi, and seonbae ssaum of the Three Kingdoms period. During the Japanese colonial period, the activities of martial arts organizations shrank, but after liberation, various schools such as tangsudo, karate, and gwonbeop proliferated until, in 1955, through discussions on unifying the name, the name "taekwondo" was established. In 1961 the Korea Taekwondo Association was founded, and in 1972 the Kukkiwon was established, standardizing the technical system and the promotion system.
Technical System
Taekwondo techniques are broadly divided into stances (basic postures), blocking, jireugi (punching), chagi (kicking), chigi (striking), and jjireugi (thrusting), and a distinctive feature is the very high proportion of kicking techniques. Representative kicks include ap chagi (front kick), dollyeo chagi (roundhouse kick), yeop chagi (side kick), dwi chagi (back kick), huryeo chagi (hook kick), narae chagi (axe kick), and ttwieo chagi (jumping kick). Training forms consist of four axes: poomsae (performing a set sequence of movements alone), gyeorugi (sparring, actual combat against an opponent), gyeokpa (striking hard objects such as pine boards and tiles), and self-defense.
Poomsae and the Geup/Dan System
Poomsae proceeds through Taegeuk 1–8 jang, Goryeo, Geumgang, Taebaek, Pyeongwon, Sipjin, Jitae, Cheongwon, Hansu, Ilyeo, and so on, learned step by step according to the practitioner's level of proficiency. The rank system is divided into geup holders (white belt to red belt) and dan holders (black belt); those under 15 years of age are promoted as "poom" and those 15 or older as "dan." Generally, 1st poom/1st dan requires passing a promotion examination after at least one year of training, and as the dan number increases, the accuracy of techniques, the control of strength, and success in breaking are evaluated comprehensively.
Competition Rules
Sparring matches are held on a 8m×8m court and consist of 3 rounds of 2 minutes each (with 1-minute rest periods). Valid areas are the trunk (the area covered by the body protector) and the head; a precise punch to the trunk scores 1 point, a kick to the trunk 2 points, a spinning kick to the trunk 4 points, a kick to the head 3 points, and a spinning kick to the head 5 points. For fouls, each penalty deduction gives the opponent 1 point, and accumulating 10 deductions results in disqualification. If a point gap of 12 or more is reached, a cold game (win by point gap) is declared.
Spirit and Philosophy
Taekwondo emphasizes spiritual cultivation, not technique alone. It takes the five virtues of courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit as the "spirit of taekwondo," aiming at the formation of the practitioner's character. Greetings and etiquette, respect for instructors and seniors, and cleaning and tidying the dojang are also regarded as part of training.
Globalization and Major Organizations
In 1973 the World Taekwondo (WT, formerly the WTF) was founded, and in 1966 the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) was launched separately, showing differences in poomsae (forms) and competition methods. The WT line developed into sportified sparring rules and an Olympic event, while the ITF line has a higher proportion of more traditional techniques, breaking, and self-defense. The Kukkiwon oversees dan/poom examinations and technical standards, and is responsible for training and educating instructors for taekwondo dojangs around the world.
Recent Trends
In 2024–2025, the taekwondo world is accelerating its transformation into a new sport and its digital transition. The World Taekwondo continues its attempts to enhance the fairness of judging and audience immersion through such measures as expanding bonus points for spinning kicks, upgrading video replay systems, and electronic body protectors and real-time electronic scoreboards. At the same time, new demonstration competition formats that combine breaking, poomsae, and self-defense to enhance spectator appeal, and "taekwondo performance team" competitions, are spreading.
In the realm of sport for all, in response to the declining number of trainees at taekwondo dojangs, programs such as early childhood physical education, senior health taekwondo, programs for multicultural and foreign participants, and online non-face-to-face classes are increasing. In particular, "lifelong taekwondo" aimed at adults and the elderly, and research on scientific training methods to prevent injuries, are active. Internationally, its role as a means of public diplomacy, such as support projects for developing countries and taekwondo classes in refugee camps, is also expanding, and cases of introducing personalized instruction using AI posture analysis apps and wearable sensors at dojang education sites are increasing.
Related Topics
- [[Olympics]]
- [[Kukkiwon]]
- [[World Taekwondo]]
- [[Poomsae]]
- [[Korean Traditional Martial Arts]]