Q & A: Who is Choi Hong Hi, did he get a Nobel Prize, and was he a unifying figure between North and South Korea?

Several months ago I saw the following question on Reddit/taekwondo:

"Can somebody please help me clear the story of how Master Choi Hong Hi managed to share TaeKwon-Do to the world and what is the story behind this martial art. Also did the man get a Nobel Prize or anything at all? He was a real unification figure of the 2 countries!" [June 25, 2021]

I answered the question there and decided to post the answer here, now:

On 18 June 2021 I visited the Kukkiwon in Seoul, South Korea. (The Kukkiwon is basically the Mecca for WT / Kukki style Taekwondo.) The reason for my visit was to see a photography exhibit about the early history of Taekwondo. The photo exhibit lasted only one week; it was unusual in its clear depiction of Choi Honghi's central role in Taekwondo. I must be clear that the exhibit was not about Choi Honghi, but about the history of Taekwondo. Yet, nearly half of the photos featured had Choi Honghi front and centre. As the saying goes, a picture speaks a thousand words.

 

 

Taekwondo History Photo Exhibition at the Kukkiwon, Seoul, Korea - June 2021

When I came to Korea over a decade ago, I was advised to be careful what I say and write about Choi Honghi and (his) ITF Taekwon-Do. This was during President Lee Myung-bak's administration who was very anti North Korea. Up until that time, Choi Honghi was practically considered anathema and his involvement in Taekwondo history was actively suppressed by the government and Taekwondo authorities. People who practised ITF or spoke favourably of Choi Honghi were covertly investigated by the NIS (National Intelligence Service; previously known as the KCIA).

Things have changed a lot since that time. Especially, in recent years I've seen a re-evaluation of Choi Honghi academically and within major WT/Kukki Taekwondo organizations here in South Korea. (WT, i.e. World Taekwondo, and Kukki Taekwondo have historically been negative of Choi Hong hi.)

Here are some examples:

On 28 November 2018, I attended an academic conference titled: "Conference for the 100th Anniversary of Choi Hong Hi: Taekwon-Do and Life; How to View Choi Hong Hi". The conference was held at the Korea National Sport University and was organized by TaekwonBox Media. Attendees included mostly people from the Taekwondo Promotion Foundation, and Taekwondo professors, researchers and students from Taekwondo colleges. Note, that at the time the conference occurred, there were no ITF Taekwon-Do departments at South Korea universities; the participants at this conference were primarily WT people. I think one of the speakers made a valid point: Dr. Heo Keonsik, who is the General Director of the Chungju World Martial Arts Mastership Organizing Committee suggested that Choi Honghi's legacy was suppressed and ignored because of "Red Complex", which is a "complex" in Korea that causes people to avoid and self-censor anything related to communism and North Korea. (Choi Honghi visited and introduced ITF Taekwon-Do to North Korea in the early 1980s. He did so in his capacity as a Canadian citizen, not as a South Korean citizen; nevertheless, as a previously South Korean military general, this act was viewed as treasonous by many South Koreans.)

On 22 June 2020, I participated at a symposium at Youngsan University's Busan Campus. The symposium focused on the article "The Early Globalization Process of Taekwondo, from the 1950s to the 1970s" by Taekwondo scholars Drs Udo Moenig and Youngil Kim. The article was submitted to the Asian Journal of Sport History and Culture and was published in March 2021. I think Dr Moenig would not be offended with me for saying that he is not a fan of Choi Honghi; nevertheless, his article made it abundantly clear that Choi Honghi and his direct subordinates were fundamental in the early spread of Taekwondo around the world. (Dr Moenig has submitted a very critical article about Choi Honghi -- I think to the same journal -- which, if accepted, should be published towards the end of this year or early next year.)

The Taekwondowon (a Korean government institution dedicated to the advancement and promotion of Taekwondo) has included Choi Honghi in the "Hall of Taekwondo Greats" where they credit him (if I remember the plaque correctly) as the person who coined the name "Tae Kwon Do", the first president of the Korea Taekwondo Association, and for spreading Taekwondo around the world.

Now to address the original question more specifically.

Choi Honghi organized and spearheaded the first Taekwondo demonstrations outside of Korea (Taekwondo Goodwill Tours) which led to the establishment of the first Taekwondo organizations in other countries. Many of Choi's subordinates became the first formal teachers of Taekwondo in other countries. When you search for "father of Taekwondo in [Germany/Netherlands/Poland/UK/Singapore/Vietname/etc.]", practically each one of these "fathers" are direct subordinates of Choi Honghi. It was on this foundation that the WT could later claim a world wide Taekwondo presence that helped get Taekwondo into the Olympics.

Choi Honghi did not get a Nobel Peace Prize, but he was nominated for it by the Canadian government. He was a Canadian citizen in good standing and high esteem. The Canadian embassy in Seoul, Korea, even named their exercise hall the "Choi Hong-Hi Gym." There is an academic article currently in process that is considering Choi Honghi as an advocate for peace. After some recommended edits by the academic journal reviewers, the article is likely to be published towards the end of this year or early next year.

Choi Honghi was not a unifying figure between North and South Korea although he clearly articulated his hope that Korea would be unified again. He also (in)directly created a means for North and South Korea to interact through what has become known as "Taekwondo Diplomacy". In recent years, when North and South Korea were at a political stalemate, they have used "Taekwondo Diplomacy" as an excuse for these two governments to re-establish diplomatic relations. The North Korean (ITF) Taekwon-Do Demonstration Team and the South Korean (WT) Taekwondo Demonstration Team joined in shared Taekwondo demonstration over several years now (such as at the 2015 WT World Championships, the 2016 North Korean visit to South Korea, the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, and some other joined activities). You can find some recent academic articles online about how Taekwondo diplomacy has been used and even how Choi Honghi's philosophy contributed to this. (Search for "Taekwondo" + "diplomacy" or "sport diplomacy" or "soft diplomacy".)

Choi Honghi is a divisive figure, but even in South Korea where his contributions were actively suppressed by the government (since the time of the dictatorial president Park Chunghee), his contributions are as of late being critically re-evaluated and he is being honored as one of the key-figures in the establishment and spread of Taekwondo.

As for part of your question, "what is the story behind this martial art": the question is a bit vague and the topic is quite broad to discuss here properly. Nevertheless, here is a very short summary. Taekwondo is a Korean martial art that evolved out of Japanese Karate. The term "Taekwondo" ("Tae Kwon Do" / "Taekwon-Do") was coined around 1955 by South Korean military general, Choi Honghi. By the late 1960s the term was applied to all the forms of Koreanized Karate that was pracitsed in South Korea.

By the early 1970s there were two clear branches of Taekwondo that became known as ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation, with Choi Honghi as founder and first president) and Kukki Taekwondo (which means national Taekwondo) or WTF (World Taekwondo Federation; the name was changed to simply "World Taekwondo" in 2016). WT is the Taekwondo practised in the Olympic games and has a primarily sport focus. ITF is not in the Olympic games and follows a more "traditional martial arts" curriculum.

I recommend the book A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tae Kwon Do for a more thorough answer to your question.

ITF's Sine Wave Motion and Korean Body Culture

Every so often I stumble upon (or am pulled into) an online conversation about ITF Taekwon-Do’s sine wave motion. This happened again recently. Unfortunately, I do not have the time to discuss all the points addressed on these online discourses. Many of the concerns I have addressed here on my blog, over the years. This blog post is in response to one recent comment on a sine wave motion related discussion:

“[The sine wave motion] was only ‘created’ [by General Choi] to discredit the pioneer instructors who left the ITF, saying they were not teaching real Tae Kwon-Do.”

The writer of this comment may have gotten this view from Alex Gillis’ book A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tae Kwon Do, Updated and Revised (2nd ed. p. 149). Unfortunately, that would be a wrong reading of the text, and a wrong understanding of the evolution of ITF Taekwon-Do under General Choi. I concede that Gillis does suggest that the sine wave motion was used politically to discredit other instructors for not doing his version of Taekwon-Do; however, the text doesn’t explicitly state that that was the reason the sine wave motion was “created”. (Footnote 1)

It is my opinion that the “creation” (for lack of a better term) of the sine wave motion was to make Taekwon-Do more authentically Korean. From early on, General Choi was on a mission to make a Korean art. It is well known that Taekwon-Do was originally, primarily based on Japanese (Shotokan) Karate. It is also a known fact that General Choi purposefully set out to make a “Korean” martial art, and started making significant changes to the karate he studied in Japan. His development of Taekwon-Do away from Japanese Karate towards a more Korean martial art was a continual process. Scholars like myself and Dr. He-Young Kimm agree that the thing that changed Taekwon-Do from being a Japanese style to a Korean style was not the superficial alteration of where the arms cross for blocks or such technicalities, or even the development of new patterns, which are based on very similar templates than Japanese Karate. Instead, the thing that changed the art from being Japanese is the exchange for Korean “traditional body movement” (Taekwondo History, p. 40). Kimm correctly states that the sine wave motion’s “up-and-down motion ... is in harmony with Korean traditional body culture” and that it has its origin in “traditional Korean body culture” (p. 81). In fact, Kimm goes so far as to say that Taekwon-Do only became a “true Korean martial art through the use of the ‘sine wave’ motion in the early 1980s” (27). It is the sine wave motion which forever changed the DNA, so to speak, of Taekwon-Do, because the sine wave motion is based on the DNA of Korean body culture, as opposed to Japanese body culture. (For what it is worth, martial arts historian Dr. He-Young Kimm is not an ITF Taekwon-Do practitioner, so his comments come with a degree of objectivity that I as an ITF practitioner might be perceived to lack.)

I have lived in Korea now for nearly a decade, and researching Korean body culture has been an ongoing interest of mine. I cannot count how many Korean traditional dance performances I have seen (as I attend dance performance sometimes several times a month); I’ve spoken to quite a few traditional Korean dancers and choreographers (including traditional dance scholars); I’ve studied Taekkyeon (Korea’s “folk” martial art) and discussed the movements with highly acclaimed Taekkyeon masters; I’m currently studying Korean drumming, at the National Theater of Korea, to better understand traditional Korean rhythm; I’ve even looked into Korean shamanism in order to get a better understanding of Korean body culture. While my researched is still ongoing, here are two significant elements that I think essential to Korean body culture:

First, Korean body culture has an intentional “verticality.” I came across the term the first time in the book Korean Dance: Pure Emotion and Energy (Korea Essentials Book 15), which describes it as follows:

The theme of up-and-down movements persists in Korean dance. In slower forms like court dances and those influenced by Buddhism, dancers regularly rotate between bending and extending their knees. In faster dances such as mask dances and certain folk dances, the bent knees are released in a burst of kinetic energy into a jump.” (p. 15.)

Simply put, “verticality” refers to up-and-down movements, usually achieved through the bending and straightening of the knees. However, this “verticality” doesn’t always have to involve the knees; for instance, apart from using the knees, in Korean traditional dance, the “verticality” is often emphasized by the lifting and dropping of the shoulders. “Verticality” is also noticeable with Korean drummers while seated, so as a concept it can be any type of up-and-down movement of the body.

The Korean term used for how this “verticality” is accomplished is gulshin dongjak 굴신 동작, which can roughly be translated into English as “springiness” or “elasticity”, although more often as “bending and stretching” or “extension and contraction”.

The second element of traditional Korean body culture is a three-beat rhythm. Basic Korean traditional dances, as well as traditional Korean music, usually follow a ¾ meter. We see a three-beat rhythm used in the basic stepping (pumbalbki 품밟기) of the Korean folk martial art Taekkyeon 택견, and we notice a three beat rhythm in the sine wave motion in ITF Taekwon-Do. (The origin of the three beat may by the philosophical concept of sam-yoso 삼요소, as the idea of yin-yang and Korea’s three-lobed yin-yang known as sam-taegeuk 삼태극 is part of Korean traditional dance.)

The sine wave motion has brought to ITF Taekwon-Do these two elements: a clear sense of verticality and a three beat rhythm. Thus, I disagree that the sine wave motion was simply “created” to discredit non-ITF practitioners. No, the sine wave was “created” to make Taekwon-Do a truly Korean martial art, rather than just a rebranding of Karate. The sine wave is one of many deliberate changes made by General Choi in his pursuit of creating an authentically Korean martial art.

A part of me want to be so rash as to say that if you practice Taekwon-Do as a Korean martial art, then gulshin dongjak should be part of your system, whether it is the “ITF sine-wave Tul motion” or the “WTF free-sparring stepping/hopping motions”, which according to Dr Kimm both “come from the same type of traditional Korean body culture” (p. 80). If you do not want to do gulshin dongjak, maybe you should rather do Karate, which follows Japanese body culture based on Shintoism.

A final thought on the idea that the sine wave motion was “created” by General Choi: I think the aforementioned discussion on traditional Korean body culture makes it clear that what we refer to as the sine wave motion in ITF Taekwon-Do was not “created” by General Choi at all, but instead is part and partial of traditional Korean body movement, and that General Choi only appropriated this into Taekwon-Do; he didn't invent it.

The big critique people have against vertical motion in Taekwon-Do is a practical one:

So-what if ITF Taekwon-Do's sine wave motion is an embodiment of traditional Korean movement as seen in other Korean activities such as traditional Korean dance—does the sine wave motion have any practical combative value? 

That is the real critique and my answer to that is, yes, it does have combative value. First, the discerning martial artist will note that the same principles are used in many other martial arts (Footnote 2). Furthermore, the sine wave principle is immensely useful for joint locks and throwing techniques. Also, if you understand how to use it as a way for generating vertical (either upwards or downwards) power, then it compliments the other power generation methods such as the hip rotation a lot. It is also useful in instances where hip rotation is not possible; for example, think of a wedging block or twin punch. Just don’t be one of those daft people that say that the sine wave doesn’t contribute power to techniques moving at a horizontal trajectory. Of course, it doesn’t. If I was a teenager I would have facepalmed myself and exclaimed “duh!”

To conclude, the sine wave motion was used to differentiate between General Choi's Taekwon-Do and other Taekwon-Do; however, that was not the reason for its inclusion in ITF Taekwon-Do. The purpose of the sine wave motion, I am convinced, was to make Taekwon-Do authentically Korean by including two elements that are essential to traditional Korean body culture: verticality and a three beat rhythm. Furthermore, when correctly understood and appropriately applied, the sine wave motion does have practical, combative benefits.

...ooOoo...

Footnote 1: While Alex Gillis doesn’t say that the sine wave motion was created specifically for discrediting other Taekwon-Do practitioners, such a reading is easy to come to, because the preceding paragraph states that the pattern Ju-Che was designed as a gift to communist North Korea, and that the sine wave motion which was used to discredit other Taekwon-Do instructors was also a gift to the North. My opinion is that although the sine wave motion may have been used as a political tool to discredit certain people, that was not the reason for its creation.

Footnote 2: The same principles found in the sine wave motion can also be found in other martial arts. For example:

• Aikido [1, 2]

• Hsing-I / Xingi [1, 2]

• Systema (YouTube)

• Taekkyeon (YouTube)

• Tai-Chi (Chen Style)

Sources Cited:

Gilles, A. 2016. A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tae Kwon Do. Updated and Revised Edition.
Kimm, H. Y. 2013. Taekwondo History.
Seoul Selection. Korean Dance: Pure Emotion and Energy.

Nominating General Choi Hong Hi for the Taekwondowon's (Taekwondo Park) Hall of Fame

I received the following by email and gladly re-post it here:


Absent political considerations there should be no valid reason to exclude Gen. Choi from any Martial Art Hall Of Fame. While his many accomplishments speak for themselves, many do not realize that some of what he did was unprecedented & at times unmatched in the TKD world. However because at various points in his life some of his personal political views concerning his unfairly divided homeland of Korea & certain governmental leaders back home resulted in some negativity that has unfortunately tainted his TKD record.
While Gen. Choi’s personal politics & views are his own, many feel that it should not impact what he did for TKD & how his work continues to influence millions globally in a very positive way. As a result you, as a TKD person, should take the time out to send an email to the new Taekwondowon in MuJu, South Korea respectfully requesting that Gen. Choi receive the highest honor possible for his international impact on TKD. We know 1 thing for sure, without Gen. Choi there would be no TKD. He of course named it. Now there still may have been another Korean Martial Sport that made it into the Olympics, but it would not have been TKD. So every single student of TKD, no matter his or her age, rank or location on this planet, owes some small debt of gratitude to Gen. Choi. PLEASE take a brief moment of your time to send an email to:
halloffame@tpf.kr

It is the least we can do & if not Gen. Choi, then really, who does deserve this honor?

You are not limited with your nominations. You can feel free to nominate anyone you feel is worthy. However if we don’t succeed in getting Gen. Choi honored, it probably will not be possible initially to have any of his followers acknowledged. Also please understand the Taekwondowon put out requests on their Korean language Facebook Page & website. They have also sent a request to the WTF for nominations. So if you don’t nominate Gen. Choi who will? There is no apparent visible outreach to the ITF side. Please do not allow politics to continue to get disrupt the martial art way or TKD’s “DO”! The Taekwondowon needs to hear from all of us, as they are on record saying their new TKD Park is for all. So lets please give them the opportunity to demonstrate that wonderful posture with fair & just action by honoring the man who started it all.

Thank you

Please feel free to use information from the below sections of sources for your email. Also it is okay to simply send an email without using the facts listed below & only state that you wish to nominate Gen. Choi Hong-Hi. That is fine & better than not sending in a nomination.

However it is respectfully requested that people do not simply cut & paste whole sections for use in their email nominations. But rather you should feel free to state your personal thoughts or reasons why he so deserves the highest induction. The below information can be used to guide you, if you find value in it.

A) (Shorter Version)

Ambassador Choi Hong-Hi
(2 Star) Major-General (Army Serial #10044)
Ambassador Choi was the “principle founder” of Taekwon-Do. As a founding member of the Republic Of Korea (ROK) Army he taught martial arts to the soldiers assigned to him from 1946. He named Taekwon-Do and promoted it endlessly as the Korean Martial Art of Self Defense. In 1955 through his unending efforts on behalf of Taekwon-Do the 1st President of South Korea, Dr. Rhee, authorized the new name. He was the Vice President of the Taekwon-Do Association of Korea in 1957. General Choi formed the Korean Taekwon-Do Association (KTA) in 1959 and served as President. Also in 1959 he wrote the first book on Taekwon-Do and led the Military Taekwon-Do Demonstration Team to Vietnam and Taiwan, marking the first time ever Taekwon-Do was performed abroad.

General Choi devised 26 Patterns or Tuls. These were the first Korean forms or Poomsae ever created. In 1962 he personally introduced Taekwon-Do to Malaysia when he was assigned there as the 1st Korean Ambassador. In 1965 he led a ROK Government sponsored Kukki Taekwon-Do Goodwill tour around the world. This tour formed the base in 1966 for creating International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF), the 1st worldwide governing body for Taekwon-Do. The ITF would grow to have millions of members in well over a hundred countries and he would preside over 17 of their World Championships from 1974 to 2001 while he was alive. Five of those were Junior World Championships. To date the ITF has held 18 World Championships, 12 Junior World Championships (under age 18) and 5 Veterans World Championships (over age 40). Ambassador Choi traveled the world tirelessly to teach and promote the original Taekwon-Do. He authored 5 books on the subject, many of which had several editions and reprints. His written works have been translated into at least 6 languages. General Choi also oversaw the development of various sets of electronic recordings of what he created; making it the most documented Martial Art ever.

B)  (Longer Version)

Ambassador Choi Hong-Hi
(2 Star) Major-General (Army Serial #10044)
 General Choi was a “founding member” (#44 of 110 Officer Candidates) of the Republic of (south) Korea’s (ROK) Armed Forces when he graduated from their 1st Military Academy in 1946. In 1962 a year after a military coup (May 16th 1961 Revolution) took place Mr. Choi was assigned to the ROK’s Diplomatic Foreign Service Corp and sent to Malaysia as the 1st Korean Ambassador to that Southeast Asian Country. His involvement and work with personally introducing Taekwon-Do there, gave rise to Malaysia being called the “2nd Home of Taekwon-Do”. Ambassador Choi’s power he held and yielded in these high-level government capacities afforded him the opportunities to become the most significantly important and influential person in Taekwon-Do’s creation, development and global dissemination.

General Choi claimed that he had been exposed to stories and some basic Taek Kyon techniques to bolster his health and confidence when he studied Calligraphy as a frail teenager. After he went to Japan to further his academic education he reports earning a II Dan in Karate. Independent sources confirm that he did indeed teach Karate in Japan at a YMCA before returning home to Korea.

As World War II was winding down, the Japanese who were now clearly losing, resorted to forcefully conscripting Korean males into military service. Once drafted into service through no volition of his own, a young Choi Hong-Hi became involved in a plot to overthrow the Imperial Japanese Colonial Government. Traitors who were Korean collaborators reported the plans and General Choi and others were jailed. While he was imprisoned he trained in his Karate and at times even instructed the prison guards, as verified by a fellow inmate who was involved in the plot and also held in confinement as a jail mate.

The end of WWII spared General Choi and he was released from captivity in Pyongyang. He went to Seoul and became instrumental in helping to set up the South Korean government, advocating for democratic national control and against communism. As a young 2nd Lieutenant he started to teach his soldiers Karate under the Tang Su Do label. As this Junior Officer moved up the ranks, he continued to spread through not only his personal teaching efforts, but also later recruited Korean Martial Artists to become instructors to teach the growing number of soldiers under his command. Even when he traveled to the USA for military training as early as 1949, he took the opportunity to display his martial art (most likely 1st Korean to do so).
A prime example of this initiative to teach the martial arts to his soldiers was when as a General he was tasked to form a new Division on JeJu Island. This 29th Infantry would become known as the “Fist Division”. It was here that he had Lt. Nam Tae Hi and Sgt. Han Cha Kyo, members of the Chung Do Kwan transferred under his command and assigned to teach the Martial Arts to the soldiers of this new Infantry Division. The use of General Choi’s fist on the Division Flag and emblem was symbolic of the Martial fighting spirit the young General wanted to instill in his Troops. A monument was erected on JeJu Island to commemorate the historic “Fist Division” inauguration. This monument contains the Calligraphy of Gen. Choi, labeling and teaching about that Martial Spirit. JeJu Island has come to be known as the “Womb of Taekwon-Do”.

When this famous Division completed their training they moved to mainland Korea. General Choi arranged for a martial art demonstration for the Korean President Dr. SeungMan Rhee. The performance was in honor of the President’s birthday and the 1-year anniversary celebration of the “Fist Division’s” formation. Their exhibition was so successful that the President stated that this should be taught to all the Troops! President Rhee had also called what they showed Taek Kyon, an indigenous Korean martial folk game that predated the Japanese occupation. General Choi however knew that is was more correctly called Tang Soo Do. This event provided motivation to find a new name for what would become a Korean Martial Art of self-defense.

Later in the fall of that year (1954) General Choi, utilizing both his advanced education and Calligraphy skills that involved extensive knowledge of Chinese characters and language searched for and later conceived of the new term Tae Kwon Do. This label more accurately reflected the shifting emphasis on the use of the legs for kicking. It of course had a word for fist, but like the “Fist Division”, a hand formed into a fist signified strength. So Kwon was joined with Tae to describe the physical parts of their Martial Art.

After General Choi created the new name of Taekwon-Do, he then engaged in several attempts to unify the civilian Martial Art Kwans as he had obtained the Korean President’s approval. In 1957 he became the Vice President of a short-lived Taekwon-Do Association of Korea. The president of the Association at that time was a non-martial artist and politician. Then Master Son Duk-Sung the instructor of the Chung Do Kwan served as the Secretary General. General Choi also served as the honorary Kwan Jang Nim of the Chung Do Kwan, after their founder Grandmaster Lee Won-Kuk moved to Japan in 1950. The Chung Do Kwan was one of the 1st Korean Martial Art Kwans to open post WWII in Korea. It was a very influential Kwan and many of their Members staffed General Choi’s military training programs as instructors.

In 1959 he led the 1st Taekwon-Do Demonstration Team abroad when he took the team to Vietnam and Taiwan in March. That same year he established and became the 1st Director of the Martial Art Department in the Army. On September 3rd, 1959 he formed the 1st Korean Taekwon-Do Association and served as their President. A couple of months later he authored the 1st book ever on Taekwon-Do, written in Korean HanGul and Chinese HanJa. This book documented the first five Korean Patterns he created and is currently on display in the Taekwondowon.

General Choi would go onto authored several other books, including the 1972 textbook that became known as the “bible of Taekwon-Do”, the unprecedented 15 Volume Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do in 1983, several condensed versions of that work, his 3 Volume Set of Memoirs, as well as a Guidebook on Moral Culture. His written texts have been translated into Korean, English, German, Spanish, Russian and Japanese. He has received numerous awards and honors for his global work on Taekwon-Do including the Korean (ROK) Government Sports Award in 1968.

While still Ambassador to Malaysia he flew to Vietnam in 1964 to introduce his new Tuls to the Korean Military Instructors for further dissemination. He also sent the manuscripts back to Korea where they were instituted there as well. After completing his diplomatic assignment he returned to Korea and in January of 1965 was elected the 3rd President of the Korean TAE SOO DO Association. He was successful in getting them to change the name to Tae Kwon Do by August of 1965. He then led the ROK Government sponsored Kukki Taekwon-Do Goodwill Tour around the world later in the fall of 1965.

Ambassador Choi moved the ITF Headquarters to Toronto Canada, a city that is a very diverse major metropolitan area in North America. This new location afforded him a geographically advantaged position half way between Asia and Europe, as well as due north from South America and the Caribbean.

Strategically this would help to further the internationalization of Taekwon-Do as a global martial art. In 1985 he again relocated the ITF Headquarters to Vienna Austria. Vienna is located in Central Europe and Austria maintains a long-standing neutral posture that allows equal access politically. This was especially important during the “Cold War” era and the days of the “Iron Curtain” divide of Europe and the global political polarization that resulted from competing political ideologies. This brilliant move helped Ambassador Choi to further his dream of spreading his Taekwon-Do all around the world, without regard for political ideology, national boundaries, race, religion or creed. A vision that he lived to see come true! Today there are numerous international chapters, secretariat offices, national headquarters and allied associations of the ITF all around the planet. This is living proof of the fact that his dream was indeed realized, which is evidence of his earning a place of honor in the Taekwondowon’s Hall Of Fame. If not him, at the top of the field, then who? If General Choi Hong Hi is not inducted then no one else should be either. As without him there is no Taekwon-Do. To not place the highest honor upon him would not only be a tragedy, but make the new entity’s attempt to honor great Taekwondo leaders a real farce!

C) (List Version)

1) As a founding member of the ROK Army he taught Korean Martial Arts to soldiers under his command since 1946
2) 1949 He traveled to the USA for military training and  took the opportunity to display his martial art there (most likely 1st Korean to do so)
3) 1953 formed the 29th Infantry “Fist” Division on JeJu Island using Korean Martial Arts to build character, strength, fighting skills and instill esprit de corps
4) 1955 (April 11) he named Taekwon-Do & obtained authorization from the Korean President Rhee Syngman
5) 1955 created the 1st two Korean Poomsae or forms, Hwa Rang Tul & Chung Mu Tul, he would go onto to create 26 in total, all named after great Korean Patriots or significant events & themes in Korean history & culture
6) 1957 Vice President of the short lived Taekwon-Do Association of Korea
7) 1959 (March) Led the Military Taekwon-Do Demonstration Team to Vietnam & Taiwan; the 1st time ever Taekwon-Do was exhibited abroad
8) 1959 (September 3) Formed the Korea Taekwon-Do Association & was electerd 1st President
9) 1959 (October) Wrote the 1st book ever on Taekwon-Do
10) 1959 Established and became the 1st Director of the Martial Art Department in the Army
11) 1962 Personally introduced Taekwon-Do to Malaysia when assigned there as the 1st Korean Ambassador
12) 1963 (July) Formed the Malaysian Taekwon-Do Federation
13) 1965 (January) Elected as the 3rd President of the Korean Tae Soo Do Association
14) 1965 (August) Was successfully in lobby for changing the name to Tae Kwon Do
15) 1965 Wrote the 1st English language book on Taekwon-Do
16) 1965 Led a ROK Government sponsored Kukki Taekwon-Do GoodWill Tour around the world
17) 1966 (March 22) Formed the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) in Seoul, Korea
18) 1968 Introduced Taekwon-Do to C.I.S.M. at their meeting in Paris, France
19) 1972 Wrote a Textbook that was commonly referred to as the “bible of Taekwon-Do”
20) 1974 Hosted the 1st ITF World Championships in Montreal Canada, which was the 1st ever World Championships outside of Korea which demonstrated that Taekwon-Do was truly an international sport & there they introduced 4 categories of competition, as well as team events, to insure the Overall World Champion was a complete martial artist
21) 1978 The ITF World championships were held in Oklahoma City, USA & expanded to female competitors for the 1st time
22) 1981 The ITF World Championships were held in Argentina; the 1st time ever a world championship was hosted in South America
23) 1983 Completed the 15 Volume Set of Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do, a written work truly unprecedented in the martial arts world
24) 1984 The ITF World Championships were held in Scotland; the 1st time ever a Taekwon-Do world championship was hosted in a United Kingdom Commonwealth Nation
25) 1985 Relocated the ITF Headquarters to Vienna Austria, as Vienna is located in Central Europe and Austria maintains a long-standing neutral political posture
26) 1987 The ITF World Championships were held in Athens, Greece; the 1st time ever a Taekwon-Do world championship was hosted in Greece
27) 1988 The ITF World Championships were held in Budapest Hungary; the 1st time ever a Taekwon-Do world championship was hosted in Eastern Europe
28) 1993 The ITF Junior (under 18) World Championships were held in Moscow, Russia the 1st time ever a Taekwon-Do world championship was opened to junior competitors
29) 2004 The ITF World Championships were expanded to seniors (over 40), the 1st time ever a Taekwon-Do world championship ever had a Veteran competition, envisioning Gen. Choi’s idea that Taekwon-Do was for all ages
30) Received numerous awards and honors for his global work on Taekwon-Do including the Korean (ROK) Government Sports Award in 1968, honorary doctorates from some of the world’s most prestigious Universities & was even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for trying to build a more peaceful world by teaching Taekwon-Do globally for decades to everyone, regardless of political ideology, national boundaries, race, religion or creed