Martial Arts
What is Taekwondo?
Martial Arts
Well, Taekwondo is really a martial-art that was developed and useful for self defence in Korea. Its main distinguishing feature will be the amount of groundwork it employs with kicking techniques being the dominant kind of attack. The word Taekwondo actually translates from Korean as, "Tae" meaning foot and "Kwon" meaning fist and "Do" meaning way, which means this literally translates as the way of the foot and fist. Taekwondo shares some similarities with Karate, this can be mainly because Korean was occupied by Japan through the early area of the Last century and also the practise of native Korean martial arts were banned and nearly disappeared completely.
Is there just one style?
This can be a difficult question to reply to for Taekwondo because the main differences result from different organisations rather than technically different styles. Some people may reason that all Taekwondo is the same although some will claim that each organisation has its own style. Therefore i gives a short summary of both main organisations:
World Taekwondo Federation
The planet Taekwondo Federation (WTF) is headquartered in Mexico. It places its main emphasis on sparring and utilizes a 'Full Contact' approach with fighters wearing protective padding before sparring. The WTF is seen as more as a sport as opposed to a martial-art especially since it administrates the Olympic Taekwondo competition.
International Taekwondo Federation
The International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) is headquartered in Canada, Austria and North Korea. It places its main emphasis on forms and achieving a method of Taekwondo. Sparring for the ITF is considered more 'Semi Contact' with control essental to opponents competing. Generally ITF students must be a member of a club or school, whereas the WTF can be a public sports organisation which provides the scholars the opportunity train at various clubs.
Could it be exactly about fighting?
Taekwondo shouldn't be seen as just an art form for fighting, it ought to be considered as an easy method of life, just like having work, taking care of a family group or fighting for any cause. The main difference being that Taekwondo is also an activity for survival if confrontation with physical harm cannot be avoided. What makes somebody that studies Taekwondo different from the average street fighter is the philosophy of peace which could just be achieved when the body-mind unite.
What will I learn?
Taekwondo will develop a person's strength, speed, balance, flexibility, and stamina, these will be trained via a variety of exercises and forms. As Taekwondo emphasis kicking, basic kicks such as turning, front, axe and side kick will be learnt before trying the greater advanced jumping and spinning kicks. Some Taekwondo schools teach grappling at advanced stages but this isn't forever the situation.
Which are the coloured belts for?
Martial Arts
Taekwondo uses a belt system to display the rank of students, similar to Karate. Often a white belt represents a newcomer having a black belt being the best grade available. With respect to the organisation there are various numbers of belts with various and varying colours. A broad guide is usually ten coloured ranks called Gup before reaching a black belt referred to as Dan, again with generally ten Dan grades available aside from ITF which has only nine Dan ranks. Different periods of time are allocated between gradings, usual the lowest rank Gup will need to wait around 3 months prior to being allowed to try for his/her next belt, whereas a Dan rank might have to wait years before being capable of grade. A general rule for Dan gradings in Taekwondo is always that students must wait twelve months per Dan level he/she is attempting to achieve, so the minimum period of time to get a fourth Dan student to become fifth Dan, will be four years between gradings.
Martial Arts
Well, Taekwondo is really a martial-art that was developed and useful for self defence in Korea. Its main distinguishing feature will be the amount of groundwork it employs with kicking techniques being the dominant kind of attack. The word Taekwondo actually translates from Korean as, "Tae" meaning foot and "Kwon" meaning fist and "Do" meaning way, which means this literally translates as the way of the foot and fist. Taekwondo shares some similarities with Karate, this can be mainly because Korean was occupied by Japan through the early area of the Last century and also the practise of native Korean martial arts were banned and nearly disappeared completely.
Is there just one style?
This can be a difficult question to reply to for Taekwondo because the main differences result from different organisations rather than technically different styles. Some people may reason that all Taekwondo is the same although some will claim that each organisation has its own style. Therefore i gives a short summary of both main organisations:
World Taekwondo Federation
The planet Taekwondo Federation (WTF) is headquartered in Mexico. It places its main emphasis on sparring and utilizes a 'Full Contact' approach with fighters wearing protective padding before sparring. The WTF is seen as more as a sport as opposed to a martial-art especially since it administrates the Olympic Taekwondo competition.
International Taekwondo Federation
The International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) is headquartered in Canada, Austria and North Korea. It places its main emphasis on forms and achieving a method of Taekwondo. Sparring for the ITF is considered more 'Semi Contact' with control essental to opponents competing. Generally ITF students must be a member of a club or school, whereas the WTF can be a public sports organisation which provides the scholars the opportunity train at various clubs.
Could it be exactly about fighting?
Taekwondo shouldn't be seen as just an art form for fighting, it ought to be considered as an easy method of life, just like having work, taking care of a family group or fighting for any cause. The main difference being that Taekwondo is also an activity for survival if confrontation with physical harm cannot be avoided. What makes somebody that studies Taekwondo different from the average street fighter is the philosophy of peace which could just be achieved when the body-mind unite.
What will I learn?
Taekwondo will develop a person's strength, speed, balance, flexibility, and stamina, these will be trained via a variety of exercises and forms. As Taekwondo emphasis kicking, basic kicks such as turning, front, axe and side kick will be learnt before trying the greater advanced jumping and spinning kicks. Some Taekwondo schools teach grappling at advanced stages but this isn't forever the situation.
Which are the coloured belts for?
Martial Arts
Taekwondo uses a belt system to display the rank of students, similar to Karate. Often a white belt represents a newcomer having a black belt being the best grade available. With respect to the organisation there are various numbers of belts with various and varying colours. A broad guide is usually ten coloured ranks called Gup before reaching a black belt referred to as Dan, again with generally ten Dan grades available aside from ITF which has only nine Dan ranks. Different periods of time are allocated between gradings, usual the lowest rank Gup will need to wait around 3 months prior to being allowed to try for his/her next belt, whereas a Dan rank might have to wait years before being capable of grade. A general rule for Dan gradings in Taekwondo is always that students must wait twelve months per Dan level he/she is attempting to achieve, so the minimum period of time to get a fourth Dan student to become fifth Dan, will be four years between gradings.