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Interesting facts about founder
Just a little something i came across. This is an old review on general choi's encyclopedia by someone in the U.S. Just something for all those people who think they know it all about TKD
Encyclopedia of Taekwondo. Choi Hong Hi. International Taekwondo Federation, 1983. Choi Hong Hi is the most controversial figure in Taekwondo, as well as one of the most self-promoting. His Encyclopedia is his life work, he says, in chronicling the development of Taekwondo. Actually, it is Choi's attempt to rewrite and obscure history at virtually every turn. Choi claims, for instance, to have realized that Korea needed a martial art distinct from Karate. He had earned a 2nd Dan in Karate while in Japan, and set about, he says, in the late 1940's to develop Taekwondo. To do this, he claims he invented over 3,000 techniques.
Oddly, almost all of them look like Karate techniques. He leaves the
impression that his many visits to the International Olympic Committee led to
recognition of the ITF as the sole international governing body for Taekwondo.
He admits his enthusiasm for Taekwondo in "socialist" countries; he doesn't
mention his son's conviction in Canada as a North Korean agent implicated in assassination attempts on South Korean officials. There are a lot of just plain odd things in his writings. He admits a tremendous pride and relief at finishing his Encyclopedia in 1985. It was published in 1983. He begins his Encyclopedia with a bitter attack on just about everyone, including
Japanese Karate masters. Everyone in the South Korean army were enemies. The South Korean government was his enemy. He claims an "ever increasing list of enemies" [his own words at p. 8, vol. I]. Among many unlikely propositions, he claims he convinced Mas Oyama to change his Kyokushinkai Karate style to ITF Taekwondo, even though Oyama never publicly evidenced any such intention, and it didn't happen.
Choi shares no credit for the development or propagation of modern Taekwondo with anyone. Most of Choi's close associates have left him over the years, and the vast bulk of formerly ITF instructors have either changed to the WTF, or become independent, and this Encyclopedia shows why: Choi is paranoid, egomaniacal, and not well connected to reality.
The Encyclopedia is not so much a martial art reference as a psychological study of its author, and it is a deeply disturbing portrait.
Encyclopedia of Taekwondo. Choi Hong Hi. International Taekwondo Federation, 1983. Choi Hong Hi is the most controversial figure in Taekwondo, as well as one of the most self-promoting. His Encyclopedia is his life work, he says, in chronicling the development of Taekwondo. Actually, it is Choi's attempt to rewrite and obscure history at virtually every turn. Choi claims, for instance, to have realized that Korea needed a martial art distinct from Karate. He had earned a 2nd Dan in Karate while in Japan, and set about, he says, in the late 1940's to develop Taekwondo. To do this, he claims he invented over 3,000 techniques.
Oddly, almost all of them look like Karate techniques. He leaves the
impression that his many visits to the International Olympic Committee led to
recognition of the ITF as the sole international governing body for Taekwondo.
He admits his enthusiasm for Taekwondo in "socialist" countries; he doesn't
mention his son's conviction in Canada as a North Korean agent implicated in assassination attempts on South Korean officials. There are a lot of just plain odd things in his writings. He admits a tremendous pride and relief at finishing his Encyclopedia in 1985. It was published in 1983. He begins his Encyclopedia with a bitter attack on just about everyone, including
Japanese Karate masters. Everyone in the South Korean army were enemies. The South Korean government was his enemy. He claims an "ever increasing list of enemies" [his own words at p. 8, vol. I]. Among many unlikely propositions, he claims he convinced Mas Oyama to change his Kyokushinkai Karate style to ITF Taekwondo, even though Oyama never publicly evidenced any such intention, and it didn't happen.
Choi shares no credit for the development or propagation of modern Taekwondo with anyone. Most of Choi's close associates have left him over the years, and the vast bulk of formerly ITF instructors have either changed to the WTF, or become independent, and this Encyclopedia shows why: Choi is paranoid, egomaniacal, and not well connected to reality.
The Encyclopedia is not so much a martial art reference as a psychological study of its author, and it is a deeply disturbing portrait.
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