WTF fighters are “sloppy”, “lack of control”, “fight hands down”, “focus too much on the sport”, “never punch”, “unrealistic”, etc etc etc. So what do you hear about the ITF? Not a thing! Is it because ITF is a perfect system? No, it is because most of the World Taekwondo Federation practitioners have not seen an International Taekwondo Federation match. The ITF isn’t practiced as much as the WTF, so it doesn’t give you the same exposure.
I can tell you the cons of the ITF, not because I am a WTF pro, but because I have several black belts in both styles. I currently have 2 dojangs and they are WTF. I will reveal later why our school has chosen to affiliate with the World Taekwondo Federation instead of the International Taekwondo Federation.
First of all, I am pro Taekwondo, not pro WTF. I read a comment on a blog somewhere and the gentleman said that it’s ALL Taekwondo anyway. I think it takes a mature mind to truly understand and believe that. The World Taekwondo Federation is essentially a mutated version of the International Taekwondo Federation. If you remember, one was created from the other.
We all know Gen. Hong Hello Choi. If you’re a WTF practitioner, chances are you’ve never heard of it. The reason you may have never heard of him is because the South Korean government considered him a traitor. Korea adopted a new Taekwondo system after Gen. Hong Hi Choi was excommunicated from the country, so today we have two big federations: WTF and ITF. Interestingly, the general. Choi is not mentioned by the WTF.
WTF or not, General. Choi is the father of Taekwondo and is responsible for helping coin the name Taekwondo, and he should always be remembered for it. Why he was excommunicated is a completely different topic and will not be discussed in this article.
Most of the techniques that were created by Gen. Choi are practiced throughout Taekwondo, be it WTF, ITF or even ATA. The World Taekwondo Federation practitioners became a mutated version, as I said before. It is important to understand that the WTF did not create what you see today. Competitors created it. Specific rules created it. The masters and grandmasters of the World Taekwondo Federation APPROVED IT, but they did not create what we see today.
The traditional roundhouse kick was no longer good enough. The powerful partner was rendered ineffective in Olympic-style competition. Hitting… well that’s just frustrating for a lot of people, WTF or ITF. I will come back to that. Please don’t say, “I could use a spin kick or a partner.” I thought the same as a point fighter in the ITF. I decided I wanted to try my hand at Olympic style competition (WTF). I had success locally, when I competed in my first WTF tournament, so I went to the US National Championships.
I admit, I had my opponent confused, but that didn’t last long. This is what I quickly found out. WTF practitioners can cover several meters in a fraction of a second, in any direction. My kicks were too short, imagine that…I’m 6’3″, and I didn’t have the footwork or training to move across the mat fast enough to hit my opponent. Sure, I had fast roundhouse kicks and I could sit on my back leg and throw multiple kicks to the body and head like no other.
If you think about it, the ring in an official WTF match is 12 square meters. That’s almost 40 feet wide, and that ring wears. Here I am, a highly successful points fighter, winning first place in virtually every tournament I’ve competed in. Then at nationals in San Jose, California, I get knocked out with a quick roundhouse kick to the ribs.
The WTF roundhouse kick has several variations to be most effective. Why lift your knee up and turn all the way when you can reduce the distance and time by going diagonal? The kick has less power this way, but hits your opponent much faster. The other advantage is that it sets your opponent up for another kick where you can flip your roundhouse kick. Other stylists see this practice as sloppy. WTF practitioners consider it effective.
Think of WTF competition like boxing. It’s exactly the same, only with the feet. In the WTF, we throw a lot of “Fast Kicks” or “Quick Kicks”. In the ITF, the closest version would be a “Skipping Roundhouse Kick”. It is a very fast forward movement, usually generated from a jump, followed immediately by a roundhouse kick with the front leg. These roundhouse kicks and 45 degree kicks are similar to a boxer’s jab. They are not meant to knock out the opponent, they are just meant to set up another attack.
At the World Taekwondo Federation, you will find other variations of the roundhouse kick, such as the bada chagi (counter roundhouse kick) or the ahp bal chagi (front kick, usually front leg roundhouse kick). Then there is the side bada chagi and the side ahp bal chagi. Then there are double roundhouse kicks, triple kicks, and quads. Most of these kicks make ITF practitioners want to puke when they see them. I know, the first time I saw a double kick, I thought it was a joke.
The double kick is actually a very powerful kick that requires strength, timing, and balance. Note: Double WTF has alternate legs continuously. It is effective in competition, and voila! If I were attacked today, the double or triple kick is the last thing I’m going to do. Why practice it then? Are you ready for my answer? Because it’s fun! People don’t participate in fencing competitions because they want to learn how to defend themselves. They do it because it’s an art form to master and it’s fun. I don’t know of any WTF competitor who competes to get better at self defense.
I have been studying martial arts for over 30 years and have reached the point where I don’t need to pretend or convince myself or others that WTF competition is great self-defense practice. I’m also mature enough to know that any competition is not good self-defense practice, and that includes the UFC.
Heck, punching should be in your arsenal if you’ve ever been attacked in the street. In WTF competition, we don’t hit, and it’s not because we don’t know how to hit. It’s because the damn judges will NEVER rate them. Why throw them away and waste energy? It’s unfortunate, but that’s part of the game, and that’s what combat is. Combat is a game.
In ITF and WTF, a sparring match is nothing more than a game of tag, with kicks and punches. I don’t agree that ITF is more realistic than WTF. For the record, both are unrealistic, competing, in their own way. WTF practitioners learn to feel what a devastating blow is. The bumps are real and they hurt, and if you’re not careful, you’ll go home with serious injuries.
On the other hand, we usually keep our hands lower and sometimes down. By the way, when your arms are down, your body is more relaxed and you can speed up your body and kick better. Instead of blocking with our arms and risking them breaking, we simply use footwork to get away or block our opponent.
In an ITF match, practitioners will fight more carefully and accurately, usually because they don’t wear equipment or have limited protection. A kick out of place will quickly jam your toe. I liked how we alternate between kicking and punching in the ITF competition. I also enjoyed the precision and control I got over my kicks.
On the other hand, constantly starting and stopping the match to award the point would break the momentum of a match and not allow further strategies to be developed. It also allowed you and your opponent to catch your breath, which is not likely to happen in a real situation.
All things competitive aside, the WTF and the ITF are wonderful systems. They have great practitioners, teachers and great teachers. The WTF is the most practiced style in the world, therefore you will find flaws in the character of the athletes only because of the large number of people who compete. You will find dojangs that have completely lost the meaning of Taekwondo and martial arts in general. I have seen dojangs that have lost 100% of their etiquette and respect for martial arts.
Note that I have also seen Karate schools and Kenpo schools that have missed the same elements. You rarely see it, because those styles are not in the Olympics and they get less exposure.
So why are we WTF and not ITF? Years ago, I got very involved in the competition. I had a dream to one day go to the Olympics and the only way I was going to have a chance was to switch to the WTF. I’d like to think I was close. I made it to the quarterfinals at the US National Championships. I lost to an outstanding fighter and individual, Michael Tang. Michael Tang was a member of Team USA at the time and he was basically my only obstacle to making it to the Team USA trials that year. The match was close, very close! On the other hand, Michael also had a dream!
I started my competitive career late as a WTF competitor as I had been part of the ITF for so long. It was essentially my only chance, before my priorities shifted to raising a family. I understand that it is not the style of Taekwondo or the style of martial arts that you practice, but the experience that you get from it.
At our academy, we do not train like Olympic Taekwondo competitors. We teach students how to hit. We even teach our students how to box and catch as well. We also teach them practical self-defense maneuvers, as opposed to rehearsed 3-step fighting patterns.
Those students seeking competition train separately in classes geared towards preparing them for Olympic-style competition. I remain affiliated with the WTF for the opportunity it gives athletes to dream, especially young athletes who have the opportunity to train for the Junior Olympics, an exciting event for children.
WTF or ITF, it doesn’t matter. The way the curriculum is presented, as well as the additional information about martial arts that it provides to students, is what is important.