olympic tae kwon do

[18elders]

Did anyone see the gold medal fight in tae kwon do?
I thought it was terrrible, when i took tKD, our blue belts would kick their ass. How did they get on the team??, He won gold last olympics also.


Sorry BTL, i know this has nothing to do with mantis but just wanted to hear everyones thoughts

[Brad]

I think I saw that match, and I was kind of surprised... I expected them to be a lot faster and cleaner. I'm pretty sure I've seen better kickers at the Battle of Columbus here, and my dad's old trad. TKD class back in the 80's... maybe there's something to the sport that I'm missing though.

[ursa major]

Some of the competitors are fighting when they are usually sleeping (other side of the world).

Some of the competitors have very shabby accomodations with very poor transportation arrangements.

Some cannot afford to bring their trainers.

Some could not afford to bring their own meals and/or supplements and make do with whatever is available.

Add it up -- jet lag, challenging living and training conditions, eating habits, the pressure to succeed and you might not perform 100% either...

The amazing part is how well some of the participants do -- remember not all events are equally funded alot of these people get there on a shoestring budget.

Best regards,
UM.

[18elders]

that is what they train for, the fight was very bad, the ref had to tell them at least 3 times to fight, no attempt to block anything, both never had their hands up but left them by their sides, the kicks were very bad for TKD standard as what we trained.

[sean_stonehart]

The biggest thing to remember is that these folks practice sport TKD. Not one of the older sets like a bunch of us started in (Moo Duk Kwan TKD in 1981). These people train for one thing & one thing only... competition. Hands are frowned on & discouraged from almost any use, so why not keep them down to the side. It's better balance from a kicking standpoint.

They do what they do... let them have it. We do what we do... I don't wanna have to explain to somebody from TKD why I think a Gwa/Sow/Chop combo is better than butter on popcorn...

[ursa major]

18elders,

I didn't see the match but it sure sounds like it was a terrible display... Olympics no less... so these guys were in the ring and the judge had to encourage them to fight ?!?!?

Three times?!? Come on!! Poor spirit. Disappointing to hear. Upon occasion I have met TKD guys who were great to fight with. Not sure where the sport is going these days...

Best regards,
UM.