Tae
kwon do
WWatch out!
Photos
& text by Karen Cheng, Lilian Goh & Vien Wong
Tae kwon do means “the art of kicking and
punching”.
Its history dates back to the sixth century
in Korea.
Nowadays, it is a popular international
sport and it became a medal sport at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney,
Australia. In Hong Kong, the 11th Inter-Universities and Colleges
Tae Kwon Do Tournament was held on 18 February at Hong Kong Park.
The competition was divided by weight classes
and rankings, with over 200 tae kwon do students from 18 institutions
participating.
City University of Hong Kong won the overall
championship.
Tae kwon do students have to wear a tobok
and a belt.
The colour of the belt is an indication
of a student’s skill.
A white belt indicates a student without
knowledge in tae kwon do, while a black belt shows a student’s maturity
in the sport.
Weapons are not used in tae kwon do. Players
have to attack their opponent’s head or body centre in order to
score a point.
Points are scored by delivering strikes to
specific areas on the opponent’s body — the head, abdomen and the
sides of the body.
Captions: Although tae kwon do is a Korean
national sport, it is widely practised by westerners.
Oops! I did it again! Competitors must have
short nails before they can enter the dojang.
Different kinds of self-defense are used
by the competitors.
Competitors wait for their turn anxiously.
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