Taekwondo

Korean martial art TaekwondoA taekwondo match at the 2016 Summer OlympicsAlso known asTKD, tae kwon do, tae kwon-do, taekwon-do, tae-kwon-doFocusStriking, kicking, blockingCountry of originSouth KoreaCreatorNo single creator; a collaborative effort by representatives from the original nine Kwans, initially supervised by Choi Hong-hi.Famous practitioners(see list)ParenthoodMainly karate; with taekkyon and some Chinese martial artsOlympic sportSince 2000 (World Taekwondo) (demonstration sport in 1988 and 1992)Korean nameHangul태권도Hanja跆拳道RRtaegwondoMRt'aekwŏndoIPAt̪ʰɛ.k͈wʌ̹n.d̪o ⓘ SportHighest governing bodyInternational Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) and World Taekwondo (WT)First playedKoreaCharacteristicsContactFull-contact (WT), Light and medium-contact (ITF, ITC, ATKDA, GBTF, GTF, ATA, TI, TCUK, TAGB)Mixed-sexYesTypeMartial art and Combat sportEquipmentCombat sport: Hogu, headgearPresenceCountry or regionWorldwideOlympicSince 2000ParalympicSince 2020World Games1981–1993 Taekwondo (/ˌtaɪkwɒnˈdoʊ, ˌtaɪˈkwɒndoʊ, ˌtɛkwənˈdoʊ/; Korean: 태권도; [t̪ʰɛ.k͈wʌ̹n.d̪o] ⓘ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techni