Promotion Testing:  On November 19th we will hold another promotion testing.  We will test 40 students for various colored belts and two for 1st degree, Black belt.  We intend on having this test start at 930 am with the doors opening to the Youth Center at 9am.  Please be on time and ready to go prior to 930.  This will allow the testing to be finished by noon and you can enjoy the remainder of the day.  This should be a good testing and allow the students to show what they have been working on for the past three months.

Tournaments:  Recently we attended the Battle of the Belts in Missouri and held a full tournament here at the Youth Center.  We are proud of all students that attended with a few exceptions.  I (Mr. Todd) talked with the junior class recently about displaying the proper attitude in class or how to treat fellow students.  The first tenet of Taekwon-Do is courtesy and we had an instance of one student being very disrespectful to another student.  Typically this would have been justification to expel the student but we are hopeful this student has learned a lesson.  Remember it is very important to treat other students, parents and everyone with respect.  You will not be promoted to the next level or learn Taekwon-Do if you are not training hard and displaying the correct discipline and courtesy. 

Party:  We want to thank all students and parents who recently attended our “potluck” party, and a special thanks to Mrs. Schulze for her hard work is coordinating and setting up for the party.  The food was great we hope you were all adventurous and tried some new or different foods.  These parties are a great way to get to know the other students in class.  We try to hold this once a year.  The next party will be our December holiday party.  More details will be coming soon.

What is Taekwon-Do:  (Mr. Ricky J. Todd, 6th Degree Black Belt)

I have heard some USTF (not in our school) black belts say they are taking Karate.  Are they confused?  Are you confused?  Here is an excellent article on Taekwon-Do from Ask Jeeves, this is pretty easy to follow and provides a good explanation of how your class fits into the martial arts world.  Remember when they mention ITF or International Taekwon-Do Federation that is the “style” you are taking now.  Please let Mr. Bushor or I know if you have questions, I have added a few notes in italics. 

From Ask Jeeves:  General Choi Hong Hi started to learn Karate in Japan and he absorbed the way of the skill of karate and the system of school of Shodokan Karate by Funakoshi Gichin. Shodokan karate was developed as a marital art based on the hand and the fist art. General Choi Hong Hi combined the hand-based karate techniques with those of Taekyon, the Korean art of foot-fighting, to form Tae Kwon Do.

Tae Kwon Do was officially formed on April 11, 1955, when most Korean martial arts masters tried to unite all the various fighting styles (such as Gong Soo, Taekyon, Kwon Beop Soo Bahk Do, Tang Soo Do, etc.) under the name "Tae Soo Do." Although not every art joined in the resulting organization, an organization was created with  many of the participants and the backing of the government. Its name was suggested by 1957 9th degree black belt General Choi Hong Hi as Taekwon-Do.

The similarities between Taekyon and Tae Kwon Do are the high flying kicks and various other foot actions, but this style wasn't completely unified until the 1960s. Tae Kwon Do also integrated various aspects of Karate. Choi Hong Hi was a 2nd degree black belt in karate (the Shotokan variety), so it was natural to utilize karate techniques in Tae Kwon Do. However, many Koreans had an influence in the development of karate, an example from among them would be Choi Yong-I (Mas Oyama) who created Kyokushin Karate.

Tae Kwon Do most likely came to America in much the same way that karate and kung fu came to the US, being carried there by Korean immigrants, who were not very populous in the US until the 1970s and 1980s, and by American military personnel, who most likely learned the art while stationed in Korea during and after the Korean War. Tae Kwon Do is taught almost everywhere in the US and Canada, and may be the most popular martial art in North America.

The International Taekwon-Do Federation currently use a system of 10 or more gups and 9 (although some consider there to be 10) degrees (dans). (We only recognize 9 dans)  The gups start at 10 and go down to 1, from which Degrees are then achieved, and go 1 through 9. (Ex. Someone who just promoted from 2nd gup to 1st gup is now eligible to promote for 1st degree.) The degrees 1-3 are associated with an Assistant Instructor, degrees 4-6 are associated with an Instructor, 7-8 with Master, and 9th degree is held as the rank of Grand Master. Degree grades are usually denoted by roman numerals e.g. VII, VIII, IX representing 7, 8, 9.

Even though different Tae Kwon Do styles, associations or schools may make adjustments or additions, traditionally there are ten color belt levels ("gup," "kup," or "keub.") and nine black belt levels (Dan or Poom-under 15 years age black belt, 1-3 Poom levels in Kukkiwon style). The original colors are white, yellow, green, blue and red. Between solid colors a crossbar / stripe of the next full color is added to the belt indicating the awarded gup level. Some groups use a solid color alternative instead of stripes (camo, orange, etc.) For example, a common belt scheme assigns the following keubs: white (13), yellow (12), purple (11), orange (10), green (9), senior green (8), blue (7), senior blue (6), brown (5), senior brown (4) red (3), senior red (2), red-black/danbo (1). The wide variety of belt levels is an American phenomenon rooted in an effort by schools to provide the appearance of rapid advancement to appease children. Under such a system, the earlier belts can be earned in as few as eight weeks. Schools with a deliberately serious focus tend to use around three keub belts: white, green, and red. Gup belt records are kept by the school of origin and Dan/Poom ranks are recorded at the style headquarters registry.

Although there are many different federations and associations, Tae Kwon Do can be broadly divided into two schools: International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF, founded 1966), and Kukkiwon, World Taekwon-Do Federation (founded in 1973).  Kukkiwon-WTF was created in Korea when General Choi Hong Hi left Korea for Canada, moving the headquarters of ITF in 1972. The WTF is recognized as the international governing body for the sport of taekwondo by the International Olympic Committee. Adherents of the ITF branch spell the martial art "Taekwon-do" and those of the WTF as "Taekwondo". "Tae Kwon Do" is often used as a generic spelling of the martial art in a general or historic sense to avoid these divisions.  (My note:  we are descendents of the ITF)

Apart from its history, one difference between ITF Taekwon-Do and Kukkiwon-WTF Taekwondo is the patterns (the pre-set, formal sequences of movements students learn). ITF has 24 patterns (called tuls) which represent the 24 hours in a day, or the whole of a person's life, while Kukkiwon-WTF uses the Taegeuk forms (which originate from the Chinese book, I Ching. The main difference between these two styles of pattern is that ITF patterns use a "stepping motion" (known as the "sine wave") -- drawing on Newtonian physics -- for hand techniques and some kicking techniques, which include moving the body in a motion in order to use bodyweight to increase the effectiveness of the techniques. Many people consider the Kukkiwon-WTF style to be more of a sport, focusing on competition sparring, while ITF is considered a true martial art, which includes competition-style sparring. In practice, however, it is the instructor that will have the most influence on what and how a student practices. The ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) had considerable success in bringing its art to the world through the '60s and early '70s. They currently maintain millions of members in 120+ countries worldwide. Beginning in 1972-73, Kukkiwon and the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) became the first (1980) Tae Kwon Do organization recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Kukkiwon-WTF is the only Tae Kwon Do body recognized by the South Korean government and its rules have been adopted by the International Olympic Committee. Only students whose training is recognized by the Kukkiwon-WTF can take part in the Olympic games, highlighting the consideration of the Kukkiwon-WTF form as a sport.

In addition to the forms recognized for modern competition, there are also a large number of traditional forms, associated with a rich lore and history. These are becoming relatively rare in competition yet are being kept alive by some traditional masters and their students. Students trained in these traditional forms, which emphasize powerful kicks, punches, and blocks, pacing appropriate to the form, fierce concentration upon imaginary opponents, and accurate and stable stances, can do quite well when bringing these skills to their performances of the poomse style forms.

Since the death of General Choi Hong Hi, the International Taekwon-Do Federation has splintered into three major groups and several smaller ones. Choi's son, Choi Jung Hwa, is head of one headquartered in Canada; a second is headquartered in Austria; the third has its headquarters in North Korea.  All three groups claim to be the legitimate successor to Gen. Choi. Various court actions are now in process.  (This is the exact reason that Axe Taekwon-Do is only associated with the USTF and the USTF is no longer associated with the ITF)