Specials
August 2006 - Kukkiwon - World Tae Kwon Do Federation Headquaters Korea
14/08/2006
Grandmaster Lee Kwan Young and Conrad Howard at Kukkiwon - WTF Headquaters
During our tour of Korea we visited the Kukkiwon headquaters in Seol to experience a 1st Dan grading. It was intersting for us Westerners to experience the Korean method of grading. It became clear that anything prior to Black belt is worthless. Unlike the western system and the old style Korean system it is only when one attains a black belt does the learning truly begin.
Kukkiwon Web site. We were all alittle sad to find that the standard of Martial artist at the WTF Headquaters (WTF Website) was alot lower than we had imagined. Each grading took around 10 minute and did not require very much expertise. Clearly the grading system in Korea has fallen to the realms of a money making organisation. However considering the fact that it is the national sport there will always be enough true martial artists around to learn the correct technique. It is these peoples that will pass the knowledge onto the next generation. And considering also that the learning/teaching and development of martial arts should be an organic process in that each style of martial art will develop over generations adapting to new techniques and new combinations of opposing techniques martial arts will spread through the individual not the grand organisation. An expert Martial artists does not need to shout. View our photos
