A Good Year for Taekwondo

(ATR) World Taekwondo President Chungwon Choue tells Around the Rings that the past 12 months may have been the most important in the annals of the Olympic sport.

"I think world taekwondo has had a wonderful year," says Choue during an interview on the sidelines of the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires this month.

"The whole world, the taekwondo family is so proud that our sport opened the door to dialogue with North and South Korea and easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula," he said.

Peace through Sport

The two nations, still at war -- at least on paper -- share the martial art. It was developed in the 1940s and 1950s, eventually splitting into two styles, one in North Korea, the other in South Korea. Two federations also emerged - the International Taekwondo Federation, representing the North, and World Taekwondo in South Korea, which has represented the sport on the Olympic program since 2000.

Choue says the world championship in 2017 in Muju, South Korea, marked the start of the "wonderful" year. A team from the ITF and North Korea spent eight days in Muju, the longest-ever engagement between the two federations at a competition. Choue says the participation of the North Koreans in Muju opened the way to more contact.

Beyond taekwondo, the spirit of rapprochement through sport hit the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang. The two Koreas, with the encouragement of the IOC, were able to come to terms on a unified team for PyeongChang.

Summer in Winter

Even though attention was directed at the unified Korean Winter Olympic team, summer Olympic sport taekwondo still took its share of the spotlight. A team of taekwondo athletes from North Korea traveled to South Korea during the Games. Along with a squad from the South, the two nations presented a series of exhibitions throughout Korea during the opening week of the Olympics.

"That was a real great moment for us, a historical moment," Choue says about the experience around the time of the Olympics.

After the games, Choue arranged a demonstration of taekwondo in Vatican City for Pope Francis. He says he regrets that North Korea couldn’t make the event.

This month, another team from the WTF went to North Korea for four nights and five days.

"It’s an unexpected invitation. In this visit we will discuss how we can work together," says.

Whether the two federations could merge?

"Not in the near future, but why not?" says the WT president.

Olympic Standing Solid

"We have 209 member nations, 100 million practitioners," Choue notes about the universality of taekwondo.

"We have the most improved Olympic sport in terms of fair and transparent judging. The spectators love to see this. We have many member nations, many practicing athletes. I believe taekwondo is quite safe," says Choue.

But he realizes that taekwondo must pay attention to developing the sport and how it is presented to keep it part of the Olympics.

Technologically Advanced

"I have to say taekwondo is one of the most technologically advanced sports," he says.

Since 2009, taekwondo has employed electronic sensors worn by competitors to determine if points are scored. In Tokyo for the 2020 Olympics, video cameras will capture the action in four dimensions for the first time.

"That means no bad angles, no blind spots. This makes it more engaging for a TV viewer as well," says Choue.

"Maybe in Paris [2024] we can develop a camera to go in the headgear or protector," he speculates.

Outside the realm of Olympic competition, Choue says the federation is making WT events such as the Grand Prix attractive for competitors with cash prizes. He says $70,000 is the top prize for athletes in the 2019 edition of the professional circuit.

Helping the Women

Choue says the federation is paying attention to the push for gender equity in sport. In the mixed team competition, two males and two females form each team. It’s an event he wants to bring to the Olympics.

He observes that the federation may be the first IF to evenly divide the international referees by gender, as was the case with the Youth Olympic Games this month.

"We are focused on developing women’s refereeing skills," he says.

Choue says bringing the sport to refugees around the globe is an important activity for World Taekwondo. He says the federation is helping with both equipment and coaching.

"We go there not just to teach taekwondo, we bring our educational program to refugee children," he says.

"Besides teaching taekwondo we are also teaching to the young refugee kids the importance of Olympism and the importance of world peace. And more importantly how to live as a good global citizen. This kind of activity makes World Taekwondo a unique international sports federation," Choue says.

Coverage of the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires made possible in part by BA 2018

Reported by Ed Hula.