Proposed new WTF competition rules

[Adept]

I already wear gloves for sparring. Have for years.

Ditto that. I like the addition of the punches in the new rules, but I disagree with the shortening of the matches, and I'd also like to see a few extra rules (allow clinching and take downs, knees and forearm strikes). I'd rather see a match go for five three minute rounds, than have it stop after only six minutes of sparring.

 

[Shu2jack]

Allowing clinching and takedowns would be counter-productive what what they are trying to do. If the WTF is trying to encourage jump kicks and flashier techiniques, allowing someone to clinch and take you down would seriously hinder any rule attempt to make matches more visually pleasing and faster paced.

I agree that clinching and take downs should be a part of sparring, but for where the WTF is heading with their sparring those extra rules would be a bad idea.

 

[terryl965]

Tw the Pka of the 70's and 80's was a organization that allowed head shot we taped our hand no gloves and where padded foot gear we where allowed to throw backfist, spinning backfist uppercuts, overhand jab, cross, we had to throw atleast 7 kicks per round and that was all we had alot of ex-boxer that could not make it in there field swicthed over to ours, It was fast pace 3, two minute round for non title matches and up to 8 two minute rounds for title shots, You could do leg sweeeps and you could hit your opponit on the way down , just not when they where on there backs on the mats.

On another subject where does it say takedowns was going to be incorporated into the new rules for the WTF I nissed that one.
Terry Lee Stoker

 

[JanneM]

I don't think that hed punches will ever come to WTF-taekwondo.
Giving more input to punches is a good idea if you ask me but I cant see head punches coming because of the original idea of WTF rules and because of the Olympics.

Only conifrmed rules so far are
3X2min rounds
Extra round (sudden death)

Up coming new rules introdeced in 2006 are
10mX10m competition area
4th judge (again)
Gloves
12 points maximum
7 points difference

New rules that they are thinking are
Coloured uniforms
extra points from difficult tecnics
electronic hogus


Only rumours are
punches to the head

(My list may not be complete because I wrote it from my memory but if someone have any more facts to add. Please...)

 

[Adept]

I agree that clinching and take downs should be a part of sparring, but for where the WTF is heading with their sparring those extra rules would be a bad idea.

I know. I disagree with the WTFs chosen path.

 

[Jim Tindell]

I'm fine with almost everything. The extra points for a "flashy" kick seems really stupid to me, though. Potentially, you could have a round end with really small numbers, because both competitors blew the whole time trying to do a 360 knife foot or something. I know WTF wants to make the matches more exciting, but that seems weird to me.

Electronic hogus seem like a good idea, but the technology isn't quite there yet.

Colored doboks are just stupid. The hogus are already blue and red, what more do you need to tell them apart?

 

[bignick]

Judo has been using colored uniforms for a while and it works...but we don't have hogu's either...

 

[FearlessFreep]

Amateur boxing has both head gear and gloves also

OK, here's a question. In boxing, I guess you can be an amateur or a pro. For an amateur, you wear headgear, are given points for hits, etc....and the Olympics can be the goal, the height of competition. Or you can try to be a professional, which means no headgear, etc...

I guess in many of the WTF sparring rules changes I'm seeing more of a direction of "sport" and even less of a direction of "a competitive/safe way of fighting". I guess if that's what they want to do then that's what they want to do. But it has me concerned or wondering if there is any organized competitive form that takes more of an approach to using sparring as a means of testing skills more related to self-defense.

One example is in punches to the head and gloves. I mean, if you allow punches to the face, that makes sense to me. Just allowing punches to the head and then putting on headgear and gloves...doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Punching someone with your knuckles into the skull hurts, and it should...and I don't think it should be encouraged...

I actually like sparring with no arm and leg guards. For one thing, it makes me feel looser and lighter, but it also helps me to remember things like 'blocking a leg kick with a straight arms hurts...don't do it'. There are things I can get away with when wearing pads that I can't when not wearing them so I think the pads tend to encourage bad technique.

Anyway, the emphasis on allowing higher scoring for more flashy techniques and some other things seems to take TKD sparring even more into the area of pure sport and away from being a martial art, at least within WTF Olympic-style sparring.

So...where's the alternative(s)? They seem to be about the only game in town....

 

[Langdow]

Hey all. After speaking with a couple national and international level officials. . .

I'd heard thatTerry, but you're still only allowed to punch to the padded hogu, which being nothing new, I don't understand the need for gloves. Do you know the reasoning behind it? Maybe harder punching?

One of the ideas I've heard is that it will be easier for the judges to see. With the color difference of the gloves and the hogu I kind of agree with this; however I don't think will solve the punching and scoring problem completely. I think that there must be more training to the officials and some encouragement to score punches. After that it will be a trickle down affect to all the countries under the WTF. I don't really believe that they will add punching to the head, but that doesn't mean that they aren't looking at the possiblity.