OFFICIAL OLYMPIC SPORT
OFFICIAL OLYMPIC SPORT
Taekwondo (the Way of the Foot and Fist/the Art of Kicking and Punching)
"Sir (or Ma'am),
I Will Live By the Taekwondo Creed,
Courtesy for Others,
Integrity Within Myself,
Perseverance in Attaining My Goals,
Self Control in My Actions,
and an Indomitable Spirit".
"Sir (or Ma'am),
I Shall Observe the Tenets of Taekwondo:
Courtesy, Integrity, Perseverance, Self Control, Indomitable Spirit.
I Shall Respect My Instructors and Seniors.
I Will Never Misuse Taekwondo.
I Will Be a Champion for Freedom and Justice.
I Will Build a More Peaceful World".
The Trinity of Taekwondo Consists of Three Major Aspects;
BODY
MIND
SPIRIT
The Theory of Power Consists of Six Major Aspects;
SPEED
MASS
BALANCE
CONCENTRATION
REACTION FORCE
BREATHING CONTROL
The flag consists of three parts: The white background, the red and blue circle in the center, and four trigrams, one in each corner of the flag.
The white background of the flag means peace. The red and blue circle in the center is called Taegeuk, the origin of all things in the universe. The central thought is perfect harmony and balance: a continuous movement within the sphere of infinity, resulting in one unit. The blue part of Taegeuk is called 'Eum' and represents all negative (-) aspects of the balance that is typical for the symbol. The red part is called 'Yang' and describes all positive (+) aspects.
The meaning of the Korean National Flag is very philosophical. The origin comes from the Oriental philosophy called Eum-Yang, in Chinese pronunciation Yin-Yang (not Ying-Yang). In Korea, the symbol of 'Yin and Yang', and sometimes the flag itself is called Taegeuk. The name means the flag of 'Great Extremes'.
HEAVEN (KUN) | WATER (KAM) |
FIRE (YI) | EARTH (KON) |
For the Korean people their flag of T'aeGeuk-Ki is a source of pride and inspiration. During the Japanese occupation period beginning in 1910 the Korean flag was outlawed in public places and for about thirty five years the T'aeGeuk flags were kept hidden until Liberation Day in 1945. The Korean flag has been a symbol of this country's struggle for independence and freedom.
Eum means dark and cold, while Yang means bright and hot. A very old book called Choo-Yuk claims all objects and events in the world are expressed by the movement of Yin and Yang. For example, the moon is Yin while the sun is Yang. The earth is Yin and the sky is Yang. The night is Yin and the day is Yang. The winter is Yin and the summer is Yang. Yin and Yang are relative. Therefore, A can be Yin with respect to B, while A can be Yang with respect to C. For example, the spring is Yin with respect to the summer and it is at the same time Yang with respect to the winter.
The Kukkiwon World Taekwondo Headquarters is located atop a hillside in Seoul, Korea. Built in 1972, this building serves as an arena for Taekwondo training, competitions, and Dan promotion tests, issuing certificates to Taekwondo students of all member national associations of the World Taekwondo Federation. The Kukkiwon is the ivy league school of Taekwondo, which governs and unifies the standards.
