Tournaments

Overview of Tournaments

Tournaments are controlled competitive events which allow students to show and improve their taekwondo knowledge and skills in a safe, fun, and supportive environment. Some enjoy tournaments for the competition, and some like them for the camaraderie. Frequent tournament-goers have become good friends because they see each other every few months and compete against each other.

Competitors do compete against other people in the tourney, but they also compete against themselves. The idea of one's doing one's best is a prominent theme throughout tournaments. For some students, it isn't just the next belt which is their motivator; it's their doing well in a tournament. It adds another level of urgency to make their forms and sparring the best they possibly can be.

There are four goals for each competitor in a tournament: do your best, be safe, have fun, and win. The order in which those are placed is up to each competitor.

Be sure to introduce yourself to everyone in your ring. If you plan to participate in other tournaments, you will likely see and compete against these people again. Many people consider it more fun to compete against people they know.

Competitors are encouraged to do their best. This means, among other things, that there is a strict no-coaching policy once a competition in a tournament ring has begun. Competitors are not allowed to receive help from anyone during competition. This includes help on their next move on the traditional or weapon forms, or ideas for offense or defense on sparring. Should coaching occur, the center judge will remind everyone of the no coaching rule. If the coaching continues, the contestant receiving the coaching will receive first an oral warning, and then their opponent will receive warning points.

Rules

A smoothly-running tournament needs rules, not only to give procedures and best practices, but also for safety.

Here is a file (PDF) with all the rules for our in-school tournaments. If something is missing, please bring it to the attention of .