Taekwondo Hall of Fame Citation

Image Source: Taekwondo Hall of Fame

I attended the recent 2011 Taekwondo Hall of Fame ceremony, that was held at the Kukkiwon, Seoul, on August 25th in support of Master Kim Hoon. I knew that he was to receive a citation, so I wanted to be there in representation of 'The Way' Martial Art Academy of Seoul, the only ITF dojang in Seoul. I also went in support of instructors Anton Conchon and David Kerr from Brazil whom I met a few days earlier when they visited 'The Way'. Instructor Conchon received a citation for his contribution as an instructor and Mr. Kerr was inducted for his achievements as a multiple world champion. I was further excited about the opportunity to meet a number of other people I hold in high esteem, for instance Master Noemi Prone of whom I wrote before.

Great was my surprise towards the end of the ceremony when I also heard my own name called. At first I thought it must have been some kind of mistake, but was indeed my name and title, "Research & Education Director for South Africa-ITF", printed on it. Since I wasn't sure what to make of this, I even went so far as to contact the Taekwondo Hall of Fame executive director, Master Gerard Robbins, to ask him why I had received a citation from the organization and how I should report back to my national governing body (SA-ITF). He graciously indulged me and seemed somewhat surprised that I should ask such a question. I guess not that many people ask why they receive something when they receive it; I hope that my inquiry wasn't discourteous. He explained that I received the citation because of my work in research and education for South Africa and for my support of the Taekwondo Hall of Fame and referred to the post I wrote on Master Noemi Prone as an example of said support. He added that: "You can report back to South Africa that you were recognized by the Taekwondo Hall of Fame with a citation for your hard work."

Me and Master Gerard Robbins,
Executive Director of the
Taekwondo Hall of Fame.

On a side note, the certificate erroneously describes me as "Master".  Although Korean martial arts use "master" for an instructor from 4th Dan and higher, within the ITF system one is only called a "master" from 7th Dan. I am still far from there. See my post on the titles used in ITF Taekwon-Do.

Also, for sake of clarification, I was not inducted into the Hall of Fame; I was merely given a general "citation"--an honourable mention. The Taekwondo Hall of Fame has different levels for honouring someone. There are two types of certifications awarded by the Hall of Fame: a citation and an induction. The latter, of course, is when someone becomes a member of the Hall of Fame. This is not the case for someone receiving a citation. Furthermore, as I understand it, there are general citations and specific citations; examples of specific citations are citations for leadership, coaching, and so on. These carry more value than general citations as the one I received.

Kukkiwon Gangster

A gangster in front of the Kukkiwon

I've been living in Korea for nearly five years now and never really made any serious effort to visit the Kukkiwon. The main reason is probably because I'm chiefly an ITF Taekwon-Do practitioner and the Kukkiwon is the WTF taekwondo Mecca. While ITF Taekwon-Do and WTF Taekwon-Do are related, they styles are significantly different that for me to visit the Kukkiwon would have had no direct benefit, other than for interests sake. I therefore had no reason to visit the Kukkiwon before. The first time I came to Korea I actually lived quite near to the Kukkiwon and although I lived in the area for about a year and a half and was even curious about going thereon occasion, I just never got around to it. This changed recently.

The Taekwondo Hall of Fame Ceremony was held at the Kukkiwon last month, so I ended up going there at long last. I would probably not have gone was it not for the fact that Master Kim Hoon, the head of the ITF dojang ('The Way' Martial Art Academy of Seoul) that I am a part of, was going to receive a citation from the Taekwondo Hall of Fame, so I was eager to support him. That's how I ended up visiting the Kukkiwon at last.

Yip, that's me in front of the Kukkiwon trying to look like a gangster. Let me know if I succeeded. My attempt at looking like a gangster is quite on purpose and tongue in cheek. If you know the real history of Taekwon-Do you will likely catch the joke.

Noemi Prone

Noemi Prone and myself.

On Thursday, at the 2011 Taekwondo Hall of Fame I met someone I never thought I'd meet, someone I've always considered somewhat of a legend, the great pattern specialist Master Noemi Prone (6th Dan). Master Prone is the adopted daughter of the late General Choi Hong-Hi, the principle founder of Taekwon-Do. I have no qualms about calling her a master even though that title is usually reserved for 7th and 8th Dans in ITF Taekwon-Do. It is well accepted that Master Prone has mastered the pattern Moon-Moo and actually set a new standard in pattern perfectionism, power and aesthetics, which is strived towards by younger generations of ITF practitioners. I remember as a young martial artist looking at her performance of Moon-Moo in absolute awe. To this day, whenever I look at her iconic performance of the pattern for the Legacy CD-ROM series (see below), I am still filled with a sense of great admiration. Her power, control, flexibility, balance and focus have been an inspiration for thousands.




I still remember seeing footage of her during an ITF World Championships and the sense of awe I experienced that bordered on fear as she shouted the pattern's name at the end. She did it with the intensity of a true kihap – a “spirit shout”. In some martial art legends a real kihap can instil dread in an opponent, sometimes causing them to faint or flee in terror.

My impression of Master Prone has therefore also been somewhat clouded by these powerful pattern performances. Meeting her on Thursday left me surprised. She was nothing like I imagined her. I imagined her to be a stern unapproachable person. This was not the case at all. She turned out to be a very friendly, open, and amiable individual. While she doesn't come across as shy, neither is she very outgoing and although this might seem unflattering in some people, it only accentuated her humble character. After having met her I can only speak of her in pleasant terms.

Something that caught my eye while we were dining at the same table at the Hall of Fame banquet was that she did not consume any alcohol. I noticed it because I don't drink either. Alcohol plays a conspicuous part in Korean culture and my abstanence often leave me feeling somewhat uncomfortable at such martial art socializing events where people are often expected to drink and toast. When I asked her about it she said that she doesn't like drinking and prefers water; I was happy to ask the waiter to bring more water to our table.

During the 2011 Taekwondo Hall of Fame Ceremony, Master Prone was inducted into the Taekwondo Hall of Fame for her great achievements. She had won medals at World Championships on numerous occasions, including gold medals in 1990 (Canada – Patterns), 1992 (North Korea – Power-Breaking), and 2004 (South Korea – Patterns), making her a three times world champion. She is known as a high level competitor in patterns, sparring and power-breaking. She received her 1st Dan in 1986 and received her 6th Dan in 2006.

Master Prone is from Argentina. She is / was the vice president of the ITF Taekwon-Do Federation of Argentina and is also a prominent member of a number of other sports organizations. She has also been declared sportsperson of the century by the Taekwondo Association of Argentina (TAA) and received numerous other awards in Argentina.

Although she is a great female role model for thousands of female Taekwon-Doin, her achievements really transcend gender. I know that I have always looked up to her and I know of many males that share my admiration. This post, is in part, a small tribute to this phenomenal Taekwon-Do woman.

Andre Conchon & David Kerr

Last night, instructor's Andre Conchon and four times ITF World Champs sparring winner David Kerr visited us for training at The Way, the ITF Dojang in Seoul.

Sbnim Kim Hoon &
Sbnim Andre Conchon

Sbnim Kim Hoon &
Sbnim David Kerr

We had a great training session. Master Kim-Hoon led us through warm-ups and some basic kicking exercising and pad-drills. Afterwards Instructor Andre Conchon had us practise evasion and counter-attack drills for the side-piercing kick, using side-stepping maneuvers. With such excellent sparring specific exercises, it is easy to see how come Mr David Kerr was able to win the World Champs four times! We ended the training by going through the patterns from Chon-Ji Teul to Gae-Baek Teul. Afterwards Master Kim-Hoon presented our guests with the ITF 태권도 가이드북 ("ITF Taekwon-Do Guidebook"), a book he authored in 2008 as part of his work in reintroducing original ITF Taekwon-Do in South Korea.

David Kerr, myself, Ok Chan-Yang and Andre Conchon still
flustered and sweaty after a fun and exhausting training session.

Afterwards some of us went to a local hangout to cool down. The locals introduced our guests to makgeolli 막걸리 (I had some yogurt-drink instead) and pajeon 파전.

Instructors Conchon and Kerr are presently in Korea to attend the Taekwondo Hall of Fame ceremony that will be held at the Kukkiwon on Thursday, August 24, 2011. To read more about Mr. Conchon, Mr. Kerr and the development of ITF Taekwon-Do in Brazil, read Mr. Conchon's contribution to Issue 20 of Totally Tae Kwon Do Magazine.