(Performance of the Taekwondo Demonstration Team during the break on the August 7th – Photo by WT) The Paris Olympics, which wrapped up on August 11th, left behind a great showcase. The Grand Palais, where the Taekwondo matches were held, was passionate with a packed crowd every day. Since becoming part of the Olympics, Taekwondo has been praised for undergoing consecutive, positive changes. 1. Continuous Expansion of Globalization During the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, The New York Times focused on the "Globalization of Taekwondo." Since the Sydney Olympics in 2000, Taekwondo has been known as a sport that has opened medal opportunities for countries with smaller Olympic teams. As proof, nations that previously haven’t won any Olympic medals, such as Côte d'Ivoire, Jordan, Niger, Vietnam, and Afghanistan, have won their only Olympic medals in taekwondo. Taekwondo has been known for its universality in the medal distribution since the introduction of the PSS (Protector & Scoring System). At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, gold medals were won by athletes from seven different countries. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, gold medals were shared among seven countries, and the rest of Olympic medals were shared by 23 countries. Ranking Nation Gold Silver Bronze 1 Korea 2 0 1 2 Iran 1 2 1 3 Uzbekistan 1 1 0 4 France Tunisia 1 0 1 6 Hungary Thailand 1 0 1 8 China 0 1 1 9 Jordan Serbia Great Britain Azerbaijan 0 1 0 13 Brazil Denmark Croatia Belgium Canada Côte d'Ivoire Cuba Italy Türkiye USA Bulgaria 0 0 1 2. Much more Tension and Thrill with the “Best of 3” Round System The best-of-three round system has received positive feedback and reaction from both spectators and Taekwondo people. Until the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Taekwondo used a cumulative scoring system over three rounds. However, at the Paris Olympics, scores are reset to 0-0 at the start of each round, and the first competitor to win two out of three rounds is declared the winner of the match. Viewers noted that there were more aggressive, and fierce matches compared to before, and that the tension lasted until the end of each round. Spectators at the Grand Palais also cheered for athletes who were actively attacking right up until the end of the rounds. In the best-of-three system, if a round ends in a tie, the player who scores with a high-difficulty attack is declared the winner. This rule is part of Taekwondo’s efforts to enhance the accuracy of the PSS scoring system and to create more thrilling matches. As a result, at the Paris Olympics many spectacular spinning attacks could be spotted, which attracted enthusiastic responses from the audience. (A spinning kick scene from the Men -58kg Final on Day 1 – Photo by WT) 3. Realization of the 'Olympic Spirit' through Continuous Support for Refugees Taekwondo is closely aligned with the UN's "The Global Compact on Refugees”. The World Taekwondo (WT) collaborates with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to support refugees and strengthen their self-reliance through various taekwondo-related activities. The Taekwondo Humanitarian Foundation (THF), established by World Taekwondo (WT), has been providing free taekwondo training to refugee youth who have lost their homes due to war or natural disasters. In 2023, it was awarded the "Olympic Cup" by the IOC in recognition of its contributions to world peace. The Azraq Refugee Camp in Jordan is a prime example of this initiative. Yahya Al Ghotany, a flag bearer for the Refugee Team (EOR) at the Paris Olympics and a KPNP-sponsored athlete, is the first Olympian from the Azraq Refugee Camp. In an interview with the official MyInfo site operated by the Paris Olympic Organizing Committee, he stated, "Taekwondo means everything to me. It has changed my entire life." (Photos from Azraq Refugee Camp) (Yahya Al Ghotany at the Olympic Opening Ceremony - Source: Algothani's Instagram) In the near future, such inspiring stories of athletes achieving their dreams of participating in the Olympics through Taekwondo, despite challenging environments like Yahya's, will be more common. 4. Efforts to Diversify Event Categories: Mixed Gender Team Test Event For now, there are eight weight categories for Taekwondo, with four for men and four for women that are recognized as official events. However, the Taekwondo community, led by the World Taekwondo (WT), aims to add a mixed gender team event to the current eight weight divisions as an official event for the 2028 Los Angeles (LA) Olympics. Following the Tokyo Olympics, at the Paris Olympics the Mixed Gender Team test event took place at the Grand Palais from the 7th to the 10th during the official schedule, athletes from China, Brazil, Uzbekistan, and France showcased impressive performances in front of large audiences. (Mixed Gender Test Event at Grand Palais - Photo by WT) The IOC, having recently embraced gender equality as a core value, has been increasing the number of Mixed Gender Team events in both the Winter and Summer Olympics. This IOC initiative increases expectations for the inclusion of the mixed team event as an official taekwondo event. Whether it will be officially added to the LA Olympics will be decided by the IOC Executive Board meeting scheduled for early next year. The Mixed Gender Team event has already been introduced as an official event at the 2021 Chengdu Summer Universiade and the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, receiving praise from viewers and Taekwondo people for its novelty.

The 2024 Paris Olympic Games came to an end, delivering thrilling, memorable moments throughout the 17 days. At the Taekwondo event from July 7 to 10 KPNP-sponsored athletes led the way, fascinating the crowd at the Grand Palais with remarkable performance. 13 of them won Olympic medals, and 3 topped the podium. Gold Tae-joon PARK (Korea) / Men -58kg Viviana MARTON (Hungary) / Women -67kg Arian SALIMI (Iran) / Men +80kg Silver Gashim MAGOMEDOV (Azerbaijan) / Men -58kg Nahid KIYANICHANDEH (Iran) / Women -57kg Zaid KAREEM (Jordan) / Men -68kg Mehran BARKHORDARI (Iran) / Men -80kg Bronze Mobina NEMATZADEH (Iran) / Women -49kg Mohamed Khalil JENDOUBI (Tunisia) / Men -58kg Kimia Alizadeh ZENOZI (Bulgaria) / Women -57kg Edival PONTES (Brazil) / Men -68kg Nafia KUS AYDIN (Türkiye) / Women +67kg Rafael ALBA (Cuba) / Men +80kg

올림픽 사용 KPNP PSS로 5개 대륙선발전 오는 8월에 열리는 파리올림픽 태권도 겨루기 본선 마지막 티켓을 놓고 각 대륙별 선수들이 치열한 접전을 벌인다. 2월부터 올림픽 본선 출전을 결정짓는 대륙선발전이 시작된다. 가장 먼저 출전 선수를 가려내는 대륙은 아프리카다. 아프리카 대륙선발전은 세네갈 다카에서 2월 9일 열린다. 첫날 장애인 올림픽 선발전을 치르고 이튿날부터 양일간 하계올림픽 본선 출전권 쟁탈전이 이어진다. 3월에는 유럽 선수들이 불가리아에서 본선 티켓을 놓고 다툰다. 3월 8일 먼저 장애인선수 본선 출전자를 가려내고, 9일부터 10일까지 본선 선발전이 개최된다. 이어 3월 15일부터 이틀 동안 아시아 선수들이 올림픽 티켓을 놓고 치열하게 격돌한다. 17일에는 아시아장애인올림픽 본선 선발전이 열린다.오세아니아는 솔로몬아일랜드 호나이라에서 4월 6일 올림픽 본선선발전을 치르고 이튿날 장애인 올림픽 본선 선발전이 진행된다. 4월 9일부터 11일까지 열리는 팬아메리카 대륙 선발전을 마지막으로 올림픽 본선 출전 선수가 모두 확정된다. 도미니카 공화국 산토 도밍고에서 열리는 팬아메리카 선발전은 9일부터 10일까지 올림픽 본선 선발전, 11일 장애인올림픽 본선 선발전이 이어 개최된다. 오는 8월 프랑스 파리에서 진행되는 올림픽 본선 태권도 경기에는 KPNP의 전자호구 채점 시스템 (PSS : Protetor scoring system) 이 적용된다.따라서 곧 시작되는 대륙 선발전도 모두 KPNP의 PSS로 치러진다. 올림픽 본선 출전권은 세계태권도연맹 올림픽 랭킹 상위 5위까지 선수 중 국가별 1인, 그랜드슬램 체급별 우승자가 먼저 출전권을 얻어내고, 남은 자리를 놓고 각 대륙별 선수들이 선발전을 거쳐 티켓을 확보한다. 체급은 남자 -58kg, -68kg, -80kg, +80kg, 여자 -49kg, -57kg, -67kg, +68kg이다.

아카이브 자료로 1950~70년대 사진, 영상, 자료 등 160점 선보여 국립태권도박물관에서 1950년대부터 1970년대까지 태권도가 걸어온 여정을 재조명하는 기획 전시 ‘흑백의 여로’가 열린다. 이번에 전시되는 자료는 태권도진흥재단이 2023년까지 수집한 38,000여 점의 유물과 기증품 가운데 아카이브 자료를 중심으로 마련되었다. ‘흑백의 여로’는 해방 이후 한국 사회가 혼란과 정비의 과정을 겪으며 성장해 나아가던 시대를 배경으로 태권도의 세 가지 여정을 그린다. 첫 번째로 태권도가 맨손 무예로서 9개관을 중심으로 연무하던 시절을 거쳐 스포츠화되는 여정, 두 번째는 태권도 1세대부터 2세대를 거쳐 태권도가 조직화되고 통합에 이르는 여정, 마지막으로 초창기 태권도 해외 보급과 태권도 세계화를 담았다. 이번 전시에는 태권도 역사를 보여주는 가치 높은 자료와 사진, 영상으로 첫 선을 보이는 ‘제5회 창무관 공수도 연무대회 포스터(1955)’, 베트남 초청 태권도 시범단의 단체 사진(1959), 대한수박도회 월간지 ‘무예시보’(1960), YMCA 권법부 출신 홍정표 사범의 ‘태권도 팔괘 품새’ 사진집(1967) 등이 많은 기대를 모으고 있다. 이종갑 진흥재단 이사장 직무대행은 “이번 전시는 태권도 여정을 ‘흑백사진’이 가진 시대의 상징과 기록, 낭만과 추억으로 표현했다”라며, “태권도 정통성을 지키며 국기 태권도의 위상을 높이는데 크게 기여하는 등 태권도 세계화에 힘써온 원로 태권도인들이 남긴 흑백의 역사를 컬러 시대를 살아가는 현 세대들이 기억하고 지켜나가길 바라며 태권도진흥재단도 함께 노력하겠다”라고 밝혔다. 출처 : THE 태권(http://www.thetkd.co.kr)