TKD evolving

[terryl965]

Should TKD evolve, over the years I have seen the sport side evolve but not much in the since of the KKW side of thing, is it time for them to evolve the Art side of TKD? Should this be done at the school or should the KKW be pressuring itself to make it better and better for the masses?

 

[dancingalone]

If you belong to an org like the KKW, then evolution should be definition come through the group, otherwise individuals will find themselves out of conformity over time with the group. This likely defeats the purpose of banding together in the first place.

I do not currently belong to any TKD organization because none of them offer anything I am personally interested in. It seems that the focus of the KKW is on the sport side of TKD, so I can understand why membership is the lingua franca for those interested in WTF rules competition.

 

[terryl965]

Well I dis-agree about the KKW is the sportside it is more like the WTF but whatI believe is the KKW is being over taken by the WTF. The only reason for the KKW that I can see if you want to fight Internationally you need the certificate for that in Olympic. But I was thinking that the KKW should be doing more about developing the art side since that is suppose to be thier focus but really have not seen much in them doing so. I really wish it would be more of a requirement of theres.

 

[dancingalone]

What stuck the sport/KKW association in my head was a post made by ATC some weeks back, where he stated that KKW technique was all about speed, including the higher stances and shorter chambers.

 

[StudentCarl]

Well...Darwinian evolution is based on the idea of survival of the fittest--that new traits stand the test of time by being useful or better than what they replace.

I'm not 'old enough' in TKD to be able to discuss what does or doesn't meet that test, but I'm practical by nature. I've also experienced enough 'new' but screwed-up skills to know that sometimes the ideas that are presented as evolution are really mistakes that haven't died off yet. Skepticism is healthy and so is testing for yourself.

 

[ATC]

What stuck the sport/KKW association in my head was a post made by ATC some weeks back, where he stated that KKW technique was all about speed, including the higher stances and shorter chambers.

Yes. KKW and WTF are hand holders. Because the WTF use to be HQ'd at the KKW facility the lines became blurred when talking about the two.

With that said the KKW is all about the evolution of TKD. That is why KKW and ITF TKD look very different.

Take the simple round kick for example. The KKW way of delivering this technique has changed from what it used to be. The kick is a more linear kick vs. the older arcing kick. The kick is now to come out straight as would a front snap kick and then as the knee is at kicking height the body is turned and the hips opened only to have the kick come around at the last possible moment.

The same can be found in the back spinning kick (spinning heel kick). The old way was to whip the leg in an arcing fashion making a circle type motion. The KKW way is to shoot a straight line back kick at a slight off target angle then hook the kick at the last moment. So the kick would be more of a semi circle than a circle kick.

You can find changes in the ax kick as well.

Not to mention the biggest set of changes, Poomsae. Look at the ITF poomsae vs. the KKW poomsae and you will see two different arts. One being more direct and to the point.

TKD has evolved, KKW TKD has not been around for that long vs. other arts and it looks very different from its farther ITF art. And all of the changes have to do with making the techniques faster.

 

[igillman]

Change for the sake of change is never a good idea and changing something just to get your name on it shows an over inflated sense of self worth.

However, the art should change as the needs and desires of this world change. Personally I would like to see more combinations in the poomsae instead of repetitions, it would be more useful from a sparring and self defence standpoint.

 

[Miles]

I there are several different layers present here:

Taekwondo as an art is evolving as practitioners are able to do more things physically (think 540 degree kick).

At the same time, Taekwondoin are evolving. Kids today are generally in worse shape physically as they were 30 years ago. Classes are shorter because there are so many demands upon the time of the students.

Finally, as Taekwondoin age, their training evolves because our individual understanding of the art and of ourselves has evolved (or hopefully deepened).