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Taekwondo Is A Sport, Art And A Way Of Life

Satisfactory Essays

Taekwondo is an interesting activity in which many people consider a sport. It is also seen as a science and also an art. How do we decide, using the knowledge obtained through definitions of sport, game and play, if Taekwondo is a sport, art or a science? Can this activity be considered all three, or is it only possible for this activity to be counted as one out of the three ideas offered. The basics of Taekwondo lie in the specific movements of body parts. Southwick (1998) describes Taekwondo as meaning “the way of the foot and fist.” (Southwick, 1998). Southwick also suggests that this is a newer name and in the beginning of the history of Taekwondo it was known as a “martial art and a way of life.” (Southwick, 1998). In trying to …show more content…

Can Taekwondo be considered all three of these ideas? Taekwondo as an art seems to be appropriate, since it is classed as a martial art. Many people seem to eliminate martial arts from the sport world. I also feel that it is appropriate to consider this activity as a science as well. Since the moves involved in this activity are extremely complex. It tends to be a science to get the moves right. The whole idea of acting out a specific set of moves, in a scientific manner tends to be highly viewed upon in Taekwondo. There are two different types of Taekwondo. Black Belt World Taekwondo Martial Art Schools suggest that “the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) and the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF). The WTF style of Taekwondo is one of the two Asian martial arts that have been recognized as an Olympic sport.” (What is taekwondo, Black Belt World Taekwondo Martial Art Schools, 2015). When scores get attached to the performance of an athlete in any activity it tends to change people’s view about the activity. If there are no scores attached, it is easier to consider it an art. Once a score is attached, it tends to be looked at as a game or sport. Another way to view this issue is looking at Taekwondo as a game. A game has all the same aspects of a sport and usually every sport can be considered a game and vice versa. Many spectators tend to views different

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