Choi Hong Hi

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Choi Hong Hi

Born 9 November 1918
Flag of Korea Hwa Dae, Myong Chun District, Korea
Died 15 June 2002
Flag of North Korea Pyongyang, Democratic People's Republic of Korea
Martial art practiced Taekkyeon, Karate, Taekwondo
Teacher(s) Han Il Dong (Taekkyeon), Kim Hyun Soo (Karate)
Rank 9th dan taekwondo, 2nd dan karate
This is a Korean name; the family name is Choi.

Choi Hong Hi (최홍희; 崔泓熙; 9 November 1918–15 June 2002), also known as General Choi, was a South Korean army general and martial artist who is a controversial figure in the history of the Korean martial art of taekwondo.[1] Choi is widely regarded as the 'Founder of Taekwondo'—most often by International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) organisations.[1][2][3][4] Others, such as World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) organisations, portray Choi as either an unimportant or dishonourable figure in taekwondo history, whether by omitting him from their versions of taekwondo history[5] or through explicit statements.[6]

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[edit] Early life

Choi was born on 9 November 1918 in Hwa Dae, Myong Chun District, in what is now the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.[7] Choi's father sent him to study calligraphy under Han Il Dong, who was also "a master of Taek Kyon, the ancient Korean art of foot fighting" (Park, 1993, p. 241).[7] In 1937, Choi travelled to Japan for further study.[7][8] In Kyoto, he met a fellow Korean with the surname Kim, who was a karate instructor and taught Choi this martial art.[7] Just before he had left Korea, Choi had apparently had a disagreement with a wrestler named Hu, and the possibility of a future confrontation inspired him to train hard; in his own words, "I would imagine that these were the techniques I would use to defend myself against the wrestler, Mr. Hu, if he did attempt to carry out his promise to tear me limb from limb when I eventually returned to Korea" (Park, 1993, p. 242).[7] Choi attained the rank of 1st dan in karate in 1939, and then 2nd dan soon after.[7][2]

[edit] Military career

Choi had been forced to serve in the Japanese army during World War II, but was implicated in a rebellion and imprisoned, during which time he continued practising martial arts.[7] Following the war, in January 1946, Choi was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Korean army.[7] From 1946 to 1951, Choi received promotions to first lieutenant, captain, major, lieutenant colonel, colonel, and then brigadier general.[7] Choi was promoted to major general in 1954.[7]

[edit] Taekwondo

Choi combined elements of taekkyeon and karate to develop a martial art that he called "Taekwon-Do" (태권도; 跆拳道), which means "the way of the fist and the foot," and was so named on 11 April 1955.[7][9] Choi founded the Oh Do Kwan, and held an honorary 4th dan ranking in the Chung Do Kwan, of which he was later stripped.[6] ITF organisations credit Choi with starting the spread of taekwondo internationally by stationing South Korean taekwondo instructors around the world,[7] and have consistently claimed that ITF-style taekwondo is the only authentic style of taekwondo, most notably in early sections of its textbooks.[10] He is also the author of the first English Taekwondo syllabus book, entitled "Taekwon-Do" published by Daeha Publication Company in 1965.

In 1971, the South Korean government refused Choi permission to teach taekwondo in North Korea; as a result, Choi went into exile in Canada and the South Korean government formed the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).[8]

[edit] Death

General Choi died on 15 June 2002 in Pyongyang, North Korea.[8] Choi is listed in the Taekwondo Hall of Fame with various titles: "Father and Founder of Taekwon-Do," "Founder and First President of the International Taekwon-Do Federation," and "Founder of Oh Do Kwan."[11]

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

^  The spelling of "taekwondo" varies widely in English usage. The WTF and affiliated organisations typically use "taekwondo," while the ITF and affiliated organisations typically use "taekwon-do" (as Choi used this spelling). In Wikipedia, the default spelling is "taekwondo." This article follows this standard, but uses "taekwon-do" when referring specifically to the ITF or affiliated organisations' names.

^  In Park's (1993) article, the note on Choi's promotion to 2nd dan in karate is followed by a note about the outbreak of World War II, which would suggest that Choi's 2nd dan promotion occurred no later than the early stages of that conflict (c. 1939–1940).

[edit] References

  1. ^ International Taekwon-Do Federation (Austria) Retrieved on 15 January 2008.
  2. ^ International Taekwon-Do Federation (Canada) Retrieved on 15 January 2008.
  3. ^ International Taekwon-Do Federation (North Korea) Retrieved on 28 January 2008.
  4. ^ General Choi (ITFNZ) Retrieved on 15 January 2008.
  5. ^ Present Day Taekwondo (WTF) Retrieved on 29 January 2008.
  6. ^ a b Son, D. S. (1959): Letter in Seoul Shinmoon newspaper (16 June 1959) Retrieved on 20 September 2007.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Park, S. W. (1993): About the author. In H. H. Choi: Taekwon-Do: The Korean art of self-defence, 3rd ed. (Vol. 1, pp. 241–274). Mississauga: International Taekwon-Do Federation.
  8. ^ a b c Goldman, A. L. (2002): Choi Hong Hi, 83, Korean general who created Tae Kwon Do, The New York Times (29 June 2002). Retrieved on 26 December 2007.
  9. ^ Kim, S. J. (2007): History of Taekwondo Retrieved on 18 September 2007.
  10. ^ Franks, A. (1993): Taekwon-Do and imitators. In H. H. Choi: Taekwon-Do: The Korean art of self-defence, 3rd ed. (Vol. 1, pp. 10–11). Mississauga: International Taekwon-Do Federation.
  11. ^ Taekwondo Hall of Fame Retrieved on 12 January 2008.

[edit] External links