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~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Origins of Korean Martial Arts

From: Examiner

As with all of worlds history, there is always a story on how an origin of an artifact, theories of pre-historic fossils, or an unused building or castle, has a hidden past which there are few, some, or no records to re-tell the story of our human culture.

It’s some what the same when speaking of the origins of the Martial-Arts in most Asian cultures. When many think of Korean Martial-Arts, the first comes to mind is Tae Kwon Do, and it’s just an Olympic Art for sport and only demonstrations.

It could take a whole text book to get deep into the past of Korean Martial Arts. But I will make the best of trying to be brief and clear. If you love history, it can sound very exciting to hear how Korean Martial Arts has been formed, if you like to know the dates, places, and people who were involved for those reasons of combat and battle on warfare.

As with most world history, all forms of combat or martial arts, really basically comes from war and violence. People through out the centuries and decades have felt the need to feel secure and safe from danger. But to be clear from harm, it is really about being able to defend one-self, even if it means fighting to the death.

Korea, as with most countries, have had battles on all sides and conflicts of Religion, Communication, Culture, Language, and Economics, around its borders of Asia. That would include Mongolia, China, Japan, and at times with India. Korea has been influenced by all of its border brothers of Asia in many ways. So as with Korean Martial Arts, a lot of the styles have been influenced by Buddhist Shaloin Monks and Japanese Occupation during WWII, and having wars with the Monguls for past generations. Each confrontation brought ideas of self defense that would fit to their environment.

Kuk Sool Won Demonstrations

The Mongolians were usually bigger to which brought grappling styles being evolved such as Kuk Sool Won, Tan Soo Do, Hapkido, to which it’s a mixture of styles to grapple, rapid Chinese punches, sweep and throw, and become rapidly fast on their hands, and practice of sharp weapons. But with the influence of kicks in each style being the focus or power of the Martial-Arts un-armed combat.

Hwa Rang Do Demo Part 1

Conflicts with the Japanese during WWII, Tae Kwon Do was born, taking pieces from the Japanese Martial Arts from its open hand system, but evolving the kicks to be the main target of a weapon, but to have the hands as a last resort of self-defense when in close range combat.

Tae Kwon Do: K-Tigers Korean Demo Team

Korean National Demo Team

When in conflict or having difficult settling disputes with the Chinese, various form of martial arts evolved when having to defend one self from armed combat when using medal or wooden weapons, which would be called Hwa Ran Do, meaning "The way of the Flowering Manhood".

Hwa Rang Do Demo Part 2

As the centuries had past, Korean Martial Arts was born, but all due to having difficult Public Relations with their Asian Border Brothers, which they were surrounded without the need of an ID or pass port to show some form of an identification. Many other styles of Korean Martial-Arts has been created or designed to fit not only for the environment but also for different stages of a fight.

Tang Soo Do Demonstrations

But not only for the location or site the battle or war would be held, but also to involve young men to become warriors into army regimens, and to allow their women to learn self-defense skills while they were at their palaces performing duties in the kingdom when there is chance for war to arise.

Hapkido Sparring

Since the time of many conflicts in Korea with other national countries, many styles or systems of organizations of the Korean Martial Arts has been born to name only a few, WTF (World Tae Kwon Do Federation) ITF (International Tae Kwon Do Federation) ATA (American Tae Kwon Do Assocation), ICHF (International Combat Hapkido Federation), and many other Korean Martial Art Organizations that have created their system of Korean Martial Arts. But regardless of which martial art you could be of interest in, what really matters, what you may enjoy out of the training and what you are looking for, when wanting to better your life.

Hapkido Demonstrations in Korea

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Thief thanks cops for rescuing him from victims

From: Nine MSN

An Italian thief has thanked police officers for arresting him and putting an end to a beating from Korean tourists whom he had robbed in Rome, police said.

"I must thank you, they were massacring me," the 48-year-old criminal told police after he was arrested near the Theatre of Marcellus, one of the monuments in Rome's historic centre.

The thief, from the northern region of Liguria, stole a handbag from a Korean family when they were not paying attention. He threatened the family with a knife when he was spotted and then tried to flee.

Two men from the family, in their twenties, chased him for several hundred metres before they got him down with taekwondo moves. They disarmed the thief and continued to beat him.

A patrolling police officer intervened, separated the three and arrested the thief immediately.

"Normally tourists will just call us and report the incidents," the officer said. "In this case, the two got really excited and could have seriously injured the thief."

The young Koreans left after they got the handbag back. The thief was transferred to a prison in Rome and will face robbery charges.

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Female TKD Practitioner Sets world record

From: Sun Coast Pasco

Cheryl Cleveland celebrated Independence Day by setting a world record. While competing July Fourth at the U.S. Open World Martial Arts Championships in Orlando, she set a martial arts record for most boards broken by a female with a side kick.

"Cheryl broke five 1-inch-thick pine boards placed back to back in a metal holder with a skipping side kick," read a related news release. "In recent years the record was four boards, held by multiple women from around the world. Now Cheryl and one other competitor from Texas hold the world record at five boards."

Cleveland, 30, is chairwoman and CEO of Community Fun and Fitness Center in New Port Richey. She has 24 years of martial arts experience, and was first introduced to the sport at age 6.

"My main focus has always been Tae kwon do but I also explored Kenpo, Uechi Ryu, Capoeira, Kali Kuntao, and Kung Fu a bit too," she said. "I first got involved when I was 6 years old. One of my older brothers was taking Tae kwon do and would come home and show me what he learned in class."

"He was really just using me as his training dummy," she said, adding with a chuckle, "I don't remember if I joined because I liked what he was showing me or felt that I needed to defend myself from him."

She considers her new world record the highlight of her career.

"I have won quite a few trophies in sparring, forms, and board breaking but never anything like this," she said.

She first learned about this world record through extensive online research before the tournament; armed with this information, Cleveland started working toward a new goal.

"I made sure I did 100 crunches, practiced my forms, and side kicked a heavy bag as hard as I could every morning," she said. "Sometimes I would kick the heavy bag so hard that the bones in my fingers would hurt from the shockwave...I knew I had a good kick when that happened."

At the actual event, Cleveland set the new world record on her second attempt.

"Once I realized I had broken all of them it was such an awesome feeling," she said.

Cleveland, also a tae kwon do instructor at the New First Baptist of Odessa, wants to pass this feeling onto her students, inspiring them to overcome the odds to achieve their goals.

"This is a story of perseverance I can tell my students because my side kick was by far my worst technique for years until right before I got my black belt," she said.

Inspiring people to get the most of martial arts and fitness is the idea behind Community Fun and Fitness, Cleveland's Pasco-based nonprofit organization headquartered in a building donated by New First Baptist Church of Odessa.

Community Fun & Fitness Center, at 1234 Gunn Highway, is a nonprofit organization in Pasco County that will offer donation-based fitness classes and community service events for all ages and all incomes, she said. "I formed this organization in 2007 with hopes that I could provide all ages, toddlers to senior citizens, a place to join physically and mentally beneficial classes (like martial arts and dance classes) all on a donation-based system so that everyone could afford to take part in something that has been such a good part of my life," she said.

She even took out a personal loan to pay for the $100,000 renovations the building needed before its scheduled 2010 opening.

"We just got a new roof, and this week the building is getting a face lift with new exterior paint and a new parking lot," she said. "I really hope once we are open people will rush in to take advantage of our donation based classes."

In Cleveland's eyes, the rewards of studying martial arts are well worth the work.

"The most important benefit by far is confidence, especially for women," she said. "Women usually feel that there is nothing they can do if they are attacked by a man who is so much bigger and stronger than them. In the first class I have my students learn to break boards with a palm strike. Right away I see their confidence grow and I know that they are already more able to defend themselves should the need arose. Flexibility is also something that I see develop in students. Other benefits are: strength, endurance, discipline, overall health, the list goes on and on."

In the future, she plans to compete at the US Open World Martial Arts Event again in 2010 - this time, she'll try to break her own record.

"Next year I will try for six!" she said.

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Taekwondo amputee still gets his kicks

From: Gazette

Ben Schwenk doesn’t remember a lot about the worst 11 days of his life.

After overcoming bone cancer, he underwent 17 surgeries in less than two weeks in 1990, as doctors unsuccessfully tried to halt a relentless staph infection that turned his left knee into the size of a basketball.

His leg was amputated above the knee, but a radical operation preserved his calf muscle, quadriceps and hamstring — kept together by a steel plate and eight screws. And it opened the door for an improbable taekwondo career.

The Air Academy High School graduate, competing with a specially designed prosthetic leg, has quickly climbed the ladder in the world’s most practiced martial art, needing only 21 months to attain a blue belt — seven rankings below a black belt.

Schwenk, 37, took up taekwondo in 2007 alongside his adopted son, Daniel, hoping the endeavor would atone for his failed bid at disabled skiing and provide discipline for a “big, tough kid” accustomed to bullying others in the foster care system.

He said his son “put his foot down. He wanted nothing to do with taekwondo.” Making matters worse, Schwenk, training under 2000 Olympian Barb Kunkel at the Academy of Life and Leadership Taekwondo in Colorado Springs, struggled performing some kicks and stances, and his lateral movement was limited.

A new prosthetic leg from Mandy Myers of Colorado Springs-based Horizon Prosthetics increased Schwenk’s flexibility so much, the self-proclaimed “Transformer” can swing his left shoe 6 inches above his head and snap boards like they’re toothpicks.

As Schwenk got better, he noticed his 12-year-old son, a notch below him at purple belt, developed “a heart to do things for others. Instead of focusing on him, he’s focusing on others.” Plus his wife, Michelle, started taekwondo, and she already has advanced to orange belt — the highest beginner level.

“I don’t make every stance look absolutely perfect, but we’re doing it,” said Schwenk, who placed first in forms and second in board breaking at the Rocky Mountain Open last year at the Olympic Training Center.

If taekwondo becomes a Paralympic sport, Schwenk maintains he could qualify because his powerful front kicks and axe kicks — his prosthetic leg often generates more strength than his right leg — are enough to compensate for inconsistent roundhouse kicks.

His biggest problem? Sometimes, his prosthetic leg falls off during practice.

“I don’t think that’s good,” he quipped. “Moving around can be really challenging. If (his prosthetic leg) has to be synchronized (with his right leg) or if it has to be a certain form, that is my biggest challenge.”

Schwenk called his prosthetic leg a blessing in disguise.

“I wouldn’t be who I am without it,” he said. “I wouldn’t have experienced so many other things. I wouldn’t have met my wife. I would have never gotten here. … I lost my leg, but I gained my life.”

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Using Martial Arts to help disabilities

From: seMissourian

Instructor Alan Williams helps Alexis Johnson, 9, of Oak Ridge, with her kicks at Children Tae Kwon Do class Thursday at Outerlimits LLC. The class was a mix of traditional students and adaptive students with disabilities. Johnson has a mild form of cerebral palsy making it harder for her to kick with her left leg. (Elizabeth Dodd) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

Alexis Johnson, 9, started wearing leg braces when she was 18 months old after being diagnosed with cerebral palsy. For about an hour she takes off the braces and wears a tae kwon do uniform to practice martial arts with her instructor, Alan Williams, part of her treatment.

At his Outerlimits martial arts school near Oak Ridge, Williams uses his 31 years of experience in martial arts to teach traditional students and students with disabilities. Putting on a uniform and earning a belt rank gives his students a new outlook on their treatment, he said.

"There's more to it than trying to make it interesting," said Williams, who is also a physical therapy assistant at Southeast Missouri Hospital.

After having 11 joint surgeries throughout his life, Williams said he knows the physical therapy regimen from a firsthand perspective. With children especially, he said, an element of fun helps the treatment.

Johnson said she likes working on her roundhouse kick. She said she practices in the grass at home because she falls down often, but never gives up.

Kevin Henry of Jackson instructs blocks during an adult tae kwon do class Thursday at Outerlimits LLC. [Click to enlarge]

"I like to learn the defense because it will help you when danger comes, especially when your parents are elderly," she said.

After two months of tae kwon do she is showing improvement in balance and flexibility, said her grandmother, Vera Archer. For example, she can now stand flat-footed and brush the floor with her hand, Archer said.

During class, Williams gives her goals encourages her to kick higher, especially with her weaker left leg.

"Alexis is one of those kids, she's just determined," Archer said.

Archer said she notices the small improvements in the left leg but still tenses up sometimes while watching the class.

"I try not to show those things to her," she said. "Kids read us like books."

Williams said he started teaching at the hospital in 1998. Since then he has taught at various locations in the area. In fall 2008, he and his wife, Jani, built and opened his own school in the country. He also teaches a class once a week at the SEMO Alliance for Disability Independence in Cape Girardeau.

Williams said individuals with disabilities are often written off, but he helps them with their weaknesses. He works with students who have cerebral palsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Down syndrome and are recovering from a brain tumor.

"I know what their specialties are and what they can and can't do," he said.

Kevin Henry, 41, started studying with Williams nine years ago while in a wheelchair. He now uses a cane and credits martial arts with helping him learn to walk.

"I wouldn't have even tried if I hadn't come," he said.

Henry was 21 when he started having double vision, the first symptoms of spinal cerebral ataxia. The neurological disorder that targets the cerebellum has since affected his speech and ability to walk.

"All that crap you don't think about, your cerebellum does," he said.

He said he started by standing up, finding his balance and throwing punches. He eventually relearned to walk after gaining more self-confidence.

"I'm going to stand here and not fall over," he said, recalling his thought process. "I'm going to walk across the room and not fall over."

Henry, a brown belt, helps with the children's class, which is an hour before the adult class he attends.

He said he changes his technique to fit his abilities. Sometimes he pivots more to keep his balance and prevent from falling down.

Williams said his students with disabilities are adaptive.

"There are no limits, only modifications," he said citing the motto of his school.

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Teen dies after match

From: Straits Times

Vincent Tan, a first-year IT student at Nanyang Polytechnic, had picked up the sport only a year ago. -- PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE TAN FAMILY

IT WAS only his second taekwondo competition and 17-year-old Vincent Tan was fighting an opponent two belt levels above him.

Barely a minute into the sparring match last Sunday, his slighter-built opponent, who had a brown belt, gave Tan a kick in the neck which ruptured a main blood vessel to his brain.

Tan, who held a green belt, was seen fumbling with his head guard for a few seconds before tumbling onto the ground.

First aid was immediately given to him, but he never gained consciousness. He died on Thursday afternoon in hospital.

The polytechnic student's death has now prompted the People's Association (PA) to suspend all taekwondo competitions while it reviews the procedures usually undertaken in such events.

'We are reviewing our processes to see if any improvements need to be made. In the meantime, we have suspended all taekwondo competitions pending the review,' said a PA spokesman. The police are also investigating.

PA said the competition, held at the Kampong Kembangan Community Club, was organised by the Greenville Residents' Committee and Singapore Taekwondo Gymnasium (STG). It had attracted more than 180 participants and was scheduled to run from 9am to 9pm, but was later cancelled.

All participants were required to wear safety gear, including head guards, and were given a safety briefing before their bouts.

PA said Tan lost consciousness at about 9.30am, and certified first aid workers from St John Ambulance Brigade, Alexandra Hospital and the Red Cross immediately attended to him while an emergency ambulance was called. He reached Changi General Hospital about 20 minutes later, with Vivian in the ambulance.

His distraught mother, Madam Nur Julia, said she cannot accept her only son's death and wants answers from the organisers.

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

A little on Taekwondo

From: Examiner

Aaassaahhhh!!!!!!!! Aaacheeyy!!! Haaa paasooo!!!!!
Huh?? What was that??? Oh, in the essence of the martial arts, such as in TKD, when connecting a punch or kick to the opponents body, making noises is not only is part of an breathing exercise, but a part of generating power from the attack when upon striking a part of the body.

It helps the student to keep a focus on the target as breathing becomes part of a source which demonstrates the strength and power of that strike. Breathing is a must in all styles of martial arts, whether making a noise to fend of foes, or to help control breathing patterns in a fighting situation. So that’s good information for all of you to know.

In TKD, the punches and the kicks, all have a real secret, which takes time and training in the art itself, is being precise on the accuracy of the strikes, having the correct speed, to maximize the power in the attacks in Korean Martial Arts.

In this beautiful art, which many are fascinated by its kicks and aero dynamics of its fighting style, to hit the opponent, a TKD stylist must have the speed, to not only be the first to get the hit, but to be also be quick enough to step out of the way from an attack from the opponent.

In the beginning as the student starts off learning the basics, through out his/her training, speed and precision will follow after learning a set of kicking and punching patterns. The student must be the first to strike, to knock out the attacker, and be the first to stay out of range. Most trained fighters in TKD, fight from a long distance, where it is not open for close range attacks, which speed and precision must come into play, to get the first hit, as power combines from the quickness of the attack.

Usually in TKD, fighters may start from a side fighting stance, where the shoulders and the hips, are directed towards the target. This position allows the stylist to be quick on his/her feet, and to allow for free of movement, where jumping or hopping becomes easier to perform to either do a flying kick in the air to reach in for distance from long range attacks. Regardless of what moves the TKD stylist chooses to utilize to strike his/her target, the important part of the art is to have the speed and precision to generate power at the target.

It maybe similar to boxing, but instead of having the body or the chest to be faced towards the target, being able to fight on a sided stance allows the body for free of movement and motion, where it is easily generated to increase the speed and precision which allows the power to connect from the twist or turn of the hips.

TKD-Tornado Kick

Either the strike could be a punch/strike or kick, twisting of the hips, and turns or spins increases the power of the moves in Tae Kwon Do. But without speed and without precision, the move will not connect accurately, and will leave the stylist to be off guard or to be left open from an attack from the opponent. Timing is everything when making its first or second move in this art. One false impression or one incorrect move towards the target could be devastating when being left unprotected from a serious injury from the other opponent

Upon Accuracy and Speed hitting the body

In TKD, it’s an art form that allows freedom of expression, especially as the kicks can become a powerful weapon, either in fighting on the street, or in a tournament competition. Speed must be first where you can be first to strike; Precision is for the accuracy where the hit must be targeted at the attacker, as the Power becomes the weapon when the movements are combined in Tae Kwon Do

Speed + Precision = Power (All from the mind)

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Taekwondo Unarmed Combat Demo

This is done a year ago at a local martial arts night event, enjoy.



~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first

Breaking Boards for Charity

From: Postar

HUDSON FALLS -- The sound of snapping boards and spirited yells resounded off the walls of Murray’s Family Martial Arts Center on Sunday, as more than 100 people participated in the center’s charity board break.

The "Kicks for Kindness" event sought to raise money for Desma Degraw, a second-degree black belt who was diagnosed with breast cancer last December.

Participants with a variety of skill levels lined up to kick or punch their way through 2,009 boards in two hours. While some children punched through a thin stick, those with more experience broke through several layers of lumber.

The symbolic act served as a display of perseverance in the face of adversity, a skill set students say was ingrained through their practice of martial arts.

"It just makes you keep going," Degraw said.

For Degraw, the skills learned in her years of Taekwondo practice helped her stay optimistic in spite of what otherwise might be a grim situation. She pointed toward the repeated efforts necessary in perfecting a move or a form with teaching her persistence.

"It keeps you focused," she said. "You don’t spend a lot of time worrying about the what-ifs."

Degraw, who was undergoing chemotherapy treatments to cure her cancer, plans to have a double mastectomy performed this week, which will remove both breasts and a portion of her lymph nodes.

"I’ll be all right," she said. "I’m not too worried about it."

She credited her teacher, Bob Murray, for instilling her with courage and persistence.

"I figure cancer’s no worse than having him back you into a corner and pummel you for a while," she told the crowd.

The event raised about $9,400 for Degraw, who has been unable to work since undergoing treatment. Local businesses donated items to be auctioned off during the event, while Murray’s daughters and a number of others cut hair and sold refreshments outside.

~武德为首, Martial Art Morality comes first

Taekwondo - Seoul Olympics 1988 Opening Demo

Awsome coordination and discipline

~武德为首, Martial Art Morality comes first

Black Belt teen strikes back at bully, rallies community against Racism

From: Globe Campus

KESWICK, ONT. — The 15-year-old black belt thought he was doing his tormentor a favour when he elected to fight back with his weaker left hand.

He had heard his white classmate throw an angry racial slur in his direction after an argument during a gym class game of speedball, and now the student was shoving him backward, refusing to retract the smear.
The white student swung first, hitting the 15-year-old with a punch to the mouth.
The 15-year-old heard his father's voice running through his head: Fight only as a last resort, only in self-defence, only if given no choice, and only with the left hand.
His swing was short and compact, a left-handed dart that hit the white student square on the nose.
The nose broke under his fist, igniting a sequence of events - from arrest to suspension to possible expulsion - that has left the Asian student and his family wondering whether they are welcome in this small, rural and mostly white community north of Toronto, one that has been touched by anti-Asian attacks in the past.
The 15-year-old, the only person charged in connection with the April 21 school fight, faces one count of assault causing bodily harm.
But a remarkable thing happened this week.
On Monday, 400 of his fellow students, wearing black in solidarity and carrying signs of support, walked out of Keswick High School to rally in protest in front of their school.
Organizer Mathew Winch, a Grade 12 student, said the school has fewer than 10 Asian students, but everyone wanted to stand up against bullying and racism. The story even hit the front page of local newspapers.
After the public outcry, the York Regional Police hate crimes unit reopened the case. Although the other student has not been charged, further charges are possible, a spokesman said yesterday.
The case is particularly sensitive because of a series of attacks on Asian fishermen in the same area in 2007 - given the name "nipper tipping" by locals - which led to a high-profile investigation by the Ontario Human Rights Commission.
Five such cases in 2007, ranging from violent car chases to fishermen on piers being pushed into the water, led to criminal charges. As a result of the publicity, many other Asian anglers came forward to say they had been abused or harassed while fishing in the Lake Simcoe area.
The Asian boy's father is a martial-arts master who trained with the Korean national team. He brought his family to Canada in 2004.
They settled in Keswick in 2006, and his son, who is still learning English, has studied hard to become a top student.
He proudly showed off a report card with a 90-per-cent average. The boy has struggled a little socially, his parents said, which makes the outpouring of support from his classmates all the more remarkable.
"It's the first time in my life I ever fought someone. I've been trained not to attack. It's total self-defence," the boy said. "I felt sorry because I broke his nose, but I can say he deserved it because he called me the racial comment. He started the fight, he punched me first."
He said the boy called him a "fucking Chinese," a comment he instantly knew was far from a joke.
"It's upsetting," he said. "I don't know how better to tell it."
For the moment, both students are suspended from Keswick High School, but the Asian student's parents have been told he could be expelled and forced to find a new school.
They are shocked and saddened by the ordeal.
The day after the fight, an older cousin of their son's antagonist approached him in the school cafeteria and uttered a similar slur, compounding their sense of despair.
"He said, 'You punched my cousin you Chinese fuck,' " the 15-year-old said. That student was overheard by a teacher and suspended.
His father explains that the easiest course would be to move somewhere else and get a fresh start for his son. But he can't do it.
"I don't want to run away. If another Asian kid comes to this school, what happens to him? Will he run into problems? Will they think they can just kick him out? I don't want to set that example," he said.
"Personally, for my kid, I should move. But as a Canadian I cannot move."
> Fight only as a last resort, as self-defence. This is what every Martial Artist should believe in.

~武德为首, Martial Art Morality comes first

1st Kick KO, Taekwondo Tornado Kick

More fight videos

~武德为首, Martial Art Virtue comes first