tae kwon do

A form of individual combat sport in the martial arts tradition, rooted in ancient Korean practices, etymologically meaning ‘to kick with the foot’ (tae), ‘to destroy with the fist’ (kwon), in the context of ‘the way or art of’ (do). It was formalized into its modern version in 1957, and a world championship was held in 1973. Presented as a demonstration sport at the Seoul Olympics (1988), the sport was introduced at several weights, for both men and women, to the Olympic programme in 2000, at the Sydney Games.