Report by Harmandeep Singh Grewal, 2nd Kup Hillingdon TKD School.

On the afternoon of the 13th July, Red and Blue Belts attended a Seminar hosted by Great Britain ITF, (GB-ITF) at the Latchmere Leisure Centre in Battersea, London.  The Seminar was a rare and valuable opportunity for students to be instructed by Grand Master Kong Yong Il and Master Choi Jung Hwa, VIII Dan.  Master R.M.K. Choy introduced Grand Master Kong and Master Choi to a rapturous applause by those present that included Master T Wolf, VII Dan, Master T.Y. Au, VII Dan, Master Oldham, VII Dan, Master Nicholls, VII Dan and Mr R. Gale, heads of some of the organisations that the GB-ITF comprised of.

Following the introductions Grand Master Kong started by giving an insight into some of the finer points of sparring.  Movements were first demonstrated and then practised by students individually. This was followed by practising the demonstrated movements in pairs, with students taking turns to attack and counter attack.

Grand Master Kong then picked a pair of students to perform free sparring while the rest of those present watched. He then repeated this with several different pairings. He then pointed out that although we had practiced the points he'd highlighted, we still hadn't implemented them in our sparring. Consequently he broke off all the students into pairs to begin free sparring.

Grand Master Kong made a point to say that one must not be predictable when sparring. Movement should not just be made made backwards and forwards but also side to side. One's attacking and counter-attacking style should also vary, so that the opponent us unable to adapt and counter effectively.  Furthermore counter attacks should begin as soon as the opponents attack has begun. This makes the counter attack much quicker and so more effective.

There was a short break following the free sparring before Master Choi Jung Hwa gave his insight into Patterns. Following an initial performance by the whole class, one student volunteered to perform Yul-Gok in front of the whole class.

Each movement was first dissected by the class and then by Master Choi. The entire pattern was dissected movement by movement. Students were broken off several times during Yul-Gok, to perform what they had learned up to that point. Both punching and kicking were analysed a great deal. For punching the use of the reation hand was demonstrated quite clearly by Master Choi to the students. The faster one pulls their reaction hand back the faster one can execute their punch, and so the greater the force in one's punch.

Both Front Snap Kick and Side Piercing Kick were also examined. In both the execution of the kick was said to begin before the foot leaves the floor. One was said not to pause at raising the knee and finishing the kick. The formation of "balkal" was also said to be especially important, so as not to damage your knee when performing the kick with great force.

One of the over-riding points of the whole pattern was he inclusion of power. Master Choi explained how, by relaxing our muscles between movements, and then tensing them just at the point of impact, we can deliver maximum force. This force should not just be limited to our attacks, but to our blocks as well. Master Choi said that our blocking should be with such force that we should be able to break the opponents attacking arm or leg so that they are unable to attack us again!

With Yul-Gok finished, Grand Master Kong then moved onto jumping techniques. This had the same format as the initial part of the seminar, first performing the techniques individually and then in pairs. As the seminar drew to a close a commemorative photo was taken of all present.

In conclusion, the day provided all those students who attended, a valuable insight into the art of Taekwon-Do from two extraordinary practitioners. Students were able to learn from the best that Taekwon-Do has to offer. This rare experience if ever repeated, would be a must for anyone practising Taekwon-Do. I believe I can speak for all those in attendance when I thank Great Britain ITF for organising the seminar, and Grand Master Kong Yong Il and Master Choi Jung Hwa for giving their time and expertise.