The Taekwondo Promotion Foundation and the Ministry of National Defense’s Military Compilation Research Institute will hold a joint academic conference on the theme of "The history of the military’s overseas deployments and the globalization of taekwondo" at the Taekwondowon Operations Center auditorium on the 22nd.
The conference is expected to be attended by experts from academia and the taekwondo community, as well as current and former military officials.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Taekwondo Promotion Foundation, and the conference aims to shed light on the historical and cultural roles that taekwondo has played in the process of overseas deployment of the Korean military, analyzing the international status of taekwondo academically through cases such as taekwondo classes in United Nations peacekeeping activities. Additionally, it is expected to contribute to enhancing the possibility of registering the "Korean Army Taekwondo Instructor Corps in Vietnam" as a registered cultural heritage in Jeonbuk and establishing an academic foundation.
The keynote speech at the conference will be given by Lee Gyu-seok, president of the Asian Taekwondo Union. During the theme presentation, there will be four presentations: △The beginning and transition of taekwondo history within the military (Retired Colonel Choi Jeom-hyun), △The starting point of taekwondo globalization, the Korean Army Taekwondo Instructor Corps in Vietnam (Director General Lee Sin-jae from the Military Compilation Research Institute), △Current status and challenges of taekwondo education within overseas deployment units (Sergeant First Class Bang Yong-jin), and △Composition and utilization of donated materials from the Korean Army Taekwondo Instructor Corps in Vietnam (Curator Song Bong-soo from the National Taekwondo Museum). During the comprehensive discussion time, experts from the military, sports, and cultural fields will gather to engage in in-depth discussions on strategies for the globalization of taekwondo and its military applications, with expectations that exchanges between presenters and discussants will organically connect field experience with theory.
Oh Seong-dae, head of the Ministry of National Defense’s Military Compilation Research Institute, said, "Taekwondo was a martial art and culture conveyed by the Korean military during the process of overseas deployment and served as a means of cultural exchange and relationship building. I hope that this academic conference will summarize the values of taekwondo in military history and explore future potential uses within the military's cultural and humanitarian activities."
Kim Joong-heon, chairman of the Taekwondo Promotion Foundation, noted, "This academic conference will serve as an opportunity to reflect on how taekwondo has developed as an asset in cultural diplomacy and defense cooperation while maintaining its value as a martial art and sport. Particularly, on the 20th anniversary of the Taekwondo Promotion Foundation, I expect it will be a venue to explore new cooperative directions between the public, private, and military sectors for the globalization of taekwondo based on past achievements."
Meanwhile, the Taekwondo Promotion Foundation plans to continue promoting follow-up research and policy linkages for the preservation of taekwondo’s historical value based on the discussions held at this academic conference, and it aims to enhance the possibility of registering the related materials of the Korean Army Taekwondo Instructor Corps in Vietnam as registered cultural heritage in Jeonbuk.
[Photo] Provided by the Foundation.
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