The Legacy of Taekwondo Legend, Professor Kook-Hyeon Jeong

Professor Kook-Hyeon Jeong (62), who serves as the top of the Taekwondo Division on the Korea Nationwide Sports activities College, is a ‘dwelling legend’ of Korean Taekwondo. Though he performed volleyball in elementary college and began taekwondo late after coming into center college, he rapidly rose to the highest stage and have become the one Korean taekwondo participant to win 4 consecutive world championships. Beginning with the 1982 World Championships in Ecuador, he gained 4 competitions in a row, together with Copenhagen, Denmark in 1983, Seoul in 1985, and Barcelona, ​​​​Spain in 1987. And within the 1988 Seoul Olympics, he gained a gold medal within the Taekwondo males’s welterweight division, held as an exhibition occasion, marking the top of his illustrious profession as an athlete.

Professor Jeong’s major weapon was quick footwork adopted by fearsome kicks. He was so quick and highly effective that the opposing gamers had been already terrified earlier than the sport.

Though he’s already over 60 years outdated, his kicking expertise are nonetheless the identical. He teaches primary taekwondo, poomsae, and sparring strikes at Korea Nationwide Sports activities College, and nonetheless demonstrates kicking throughout class. If you happen to throw your physique all of the sudden after which hit a again kick, the scholar who was holding the mat will fall distant with a popping sound.

He served because the Secretary Normal of the Taekwondo Promotion Group from 2018 to 2021, and is at present energetic as an government member of the World Taekwondo Federation and the Asian Federation, and vice-chairman of the Efficiency Enchancment Division of the Korea Sports activities Council.

His Taekwondo life was not as easy because it appeared. Above all, the lifetime of a Taekwondo participant on the time he was in his prime was extraordinarily tough.

On the time when Taekwondo was not an official Olympic sport (Taekwondo was adopted as an official sport beginning on the Sydney 2000 Olympics), there have been virtually no company groups. Most gamers retired early after graduating from faculty and serving within the army.

He, who gained the world championship, was no exception. After graduating from faculty, he could not discover a correct crew, so he labored out on his personal. He mentioned, “At the moment, Gaepo-dong in Gangnam, Seoul was being developed. “I cooked and ate kimchi stew on my own in a single room and went to the gymnasium run by my instructor to train,” he mentioned “Even when I used to be a member of the nationwide crew, just for a few month a yr. “For the remainder, I needed to run on my own, kick on my own, and practice on my own.”

If you happen to miss the nationwide crew choice competitors, the athletic atmosphere deteriorates. In reality, he was eradicated from the nationwide crew choice competitors for the 1986 Seoul Asian Video games and needed to severely contemplate retirement because of the lack of an acceptable place to train. Having already gained the World Championships thrice in a row, he was in a position to proceed exercising whereas instructing college students at Yeosu Center College with the assistance of an acquaintance. By means of such twists and turns, he managed to win 4 consecutive championships till the 1987 World Championships.

Even after successful the gold medal on the 1988 Seoul Olympics, not a lot modified. As a result of she was a gold medalist in an exhibition occasion, there have been no decorations or pension advantages. They weren’t included on the Blue Home invitation checklist for medal winners.

On the time he gained the gold medal on the Seoul Olympics, he was taking part in as a coach and athlete for the Subway Company’s Taekwondo crew, and his rank on the time was an bizarre police officer. He mentioned, “I do not imply to disparage the Cheongwon Police in any respect, however I could not assist however surprise what I used to be doing right here after successful 4 consecutive world championships and an Olympic gold medal.”

After that, he seemed for positions as a sensible instructor within the college’s Taekwondo division which was opening in several universities. However I failed each time. He barely made a dwelling by working as a part-time lecturer. He mentioned, “I needed to earn cash one way or the other, so I traveled to the US, Mexico, and Brazil to show sparring and provides seminars. Would you say it is a ‘South East Asia tour’ form of factor? I’ve been to Brazil 5 occasions, which takes greater than a day by aircraft. “If I did not do this, I could not make a dwelling,” he mentioned.

And at last, in 2000, he was formally appointed as a professor at Korea Nationwide Sports activities College, his alma mater. It wasn’t till he was virtually 40 that he was in a position to calm down stably.

As a participant, he was one of the best in sparring and had no rivals These days, he primarily teaches poomsae. The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has been making an attempt to diversify the game for the reason that early 2000s and has been selling Poomsae on a big scale, and served as a demonstrator of ‘Taegeuk Poomsae’, which was simply starting to be standardized.

Professor Jeong mentioned, “Fairly than due to my good posture, I feel I wish to use somebody who had achieved good ends in the World Championships to advertise Poomsae.” He added, “I am not aware of Poomsae, so at first, I discovered it by sweating rather a lot from coach Kyuhyeon Lee.” He laughed.

At present, he’s a licensed eighth Dan Taekwondo. Primarily based on his expertise alone, he’s worthy of reaching ninth Dan, the best Dan acknowledged by Kukkiwon, however he’s in no rush and is slowly constructing his ranks. He, who gained his eighth dan three years in the past, mentioned, “After you’ve got your eighth dan, you should wait 8 years earlier than you possibly can take the ordination examination,” and added, “I feel the I will likely be near 70 by the point I attempt for my ninth dan.

Even nowadays, his day begins and ends with train. He wakes up at 6 am, goes to high school, and warms up by operating for about half-hour within the close by Olympic Park. Afterwards, I work out my muscle tissue for about half-hour within the college’s weight coaching centre.

He mentioned, “As you grow old, an important issues are flexibility and power coaching,” and added, “You have to do power coaching constantly with out overdoing it.” To strengthen your belly muscle tissue, you sit up and carry your legs, and to coach your decrease physique, you do leg curls and leg extensions.

After that, I’m going again house, eat breakfast, and go to high school once more. For instance, going to work twice a day, as soon as for train and as soon as for sophistication.

He usually performs badminton after work. After swinging a racket for an hour or two in an indoor gymnasium, your complete physique is drenched in sweat. He mentioned, “The sweat you lose in a sauna and the sweat you lose whereas transferring your physique are worlds aside.”

He’s additionally energetic in worldwide federations and travels overseas incessantly. The primary issues he packs are exercise pants, shorts, and a T-shirt. He mentioned, “Is not there a worse health middle than the resort you go to? “Identical to in Korea I get up at 6 am and begin the day with a light-weight run, I attempt to keep the routine of waking up at 6 am after which operating once I go overseas,” he mentioned.

He significantly emphasised the significance of warm-up workout routines for middle-aged exercisers. He mentioned, “Many individuals underestimate the significance of warm-up workout routines. “Even in golf, we all know we have to loosen totally different components of our physique early, however we frequently simply make a number of empty swings,” he mentioned “Accidents come unexpectedly , and an unprepared physique can undergo extra critical accidents.” “Even when it is somewhat annoying, it is good to get into the behavior of warming up,” he mentioned.

He performed till he was 28, which was fairly late on the time. There have been no main accidents. Together with train, constant meals administration additionally had an impact.

In brief, he hardly ever drank alcohol. He mentioned, “Even once I went to a bar with my aged, I hardly ever drank alcohol. As a substitute, I’d come again after sipping cola with fruit or squid snacks.” He added, “I’ve a structure that doesn’t tolerate alcohol from the start. “In some methods, I am fortunate, if I had drank rather a lot at a younger age, it would not have been really easy to remain wholesome.” Even when different gamers drank espresso, they drank milk or Ssanghwa tea, which is sweet for the physique. He additionally by no means overdoes his physique, both throughout his taking part in profession or now. If you happen to really feel drained, take a break instantly.

Approaching his one centesimal birthday, he’s getting ready for the third chapter of his life. He mentioned, “I’ve been concerned on the planet of Taekwondo all my life and have had many advantages. “I am fascinated about what function I can play for the Taekwondo world and the broader Korean sports activities world,” mentioned Korean Taekwondo properly. ” “Sooner or later, I wish to work internationally to boost the standing of Korean Taekwondo,” he mentioned.

Correspondent Lee Heon-jae uni@donga.com