World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) governs the Olympic sport
International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) represents the original Taekwondo
British taekwondo team in Olympics
British Taekwondo Council has as members the national organisations for different types of Taekwondo, including the British Taekwondo Control Board which governs the sport of WTF Taekwondo in the United Kingdom.
Team GB seal German Open medals
10 March 2008
Great Britain’s taekwondo team follow eight medals at the Dutch Open with three more at the German Open. Stella Whitehead won gold.
Full story on BBC Sport © BBC TV
Meet the GB taekwondo team
05 Dec 07
Full story on BBC Sport © BBC TV
Third time lucky?
22 February 2008
GB star Sarah Stevenson is ready for her third Olympics
Full story on BBC Sport © BBC TV
Stars for 2012?
21 January 2007
Taekwondo star Aaron Cook is part of the line-up.
Full story on BBC Sport © BBC TV
Want to try the world’s most popular martial art, combining sport, self-defense, exercise and mental discipline?
Probably the world’s most popular martial art, Taekwondo is a full contact discipline for both sexes and almost any age. Taekwondo combines sport, self-defense, exercise and philosophy, and develops strength, stamina, speed, balance, flexibility, and mind and body discipline.
Traditional Taekwondo includes exercises, self-defense, sparring, meditation, breaking of boards, ethics, etiquette and respect. Its philosophy emphasises freedom, justice and peace, although when followed as a full contact sport, competitive spirit and determination are more important. Unlike karate or kung fu, it makes much use of kicking techniques, to strike with the long reach and strength of the legs.
Taekwondo developed after World War 2 in South Korea, and is their national sport. Taekwondo (tae kwon do) can be roughly translated as ‘the way of foot and fist’, or of kicking and striking.
The Taekwondo world is split into different styles and schools. The main divide is between the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF), as a sport as practised at the Olympics; and the original International Taekwondo Federation (ITF), who includes more philosophy. Competitions take place only within each school.
Britain has three Taekwondo places for the 2008 Olympic games, and is ranked 11th worldwide. The strong squad includes Sarah Stevenson, Louise Mair, Michael Harvey, Adam Corrigan, Davoud Etiminani, Aaron Cook, Farrin Cummins, Jordan Gayle and Bianca Walkden. The three slots will be allocated in May.
take part? small group | with family
where? inside
energy/fitness level? you’ll sweat a bit
sociability? too full on!
disability access*? limited
can be played? competitively
contact sport? full on
try it cost? low
play it cost? moderate
Each school or type of Taikwondo has somewhat different techniques and different emphasis on the philosophy or the sport aspects. Check out your local clubs, and choose one with what you are looking for, and that has a good reputation. Here are links to the club directory pages of two of the largest federations:
You may also want to check out the Getting Started page.
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