'Elbow guards' suggested to be used in matches.



World Taekwondo Federation (President Jung Won Choue, WTF) has made an announcement on the 26th of their plans to make adjustments to protective gears used in Taekwondo matches that hinder flow of the matches with delays. This announcement came after reviewing matches at 2008 Beijing Olympics Games where equipments gave athletes problems.

WTF official said "I have witnessed many matches that were delayed during the Olympic Games that were avoidable. Of course it could be due to the equipments not fitting the athlete's body well but more importantly, some of the gears being used at present time do not accommodate to Taekwondo movements" and explained his reasons to start research on this matter. This also has to do with the lack of media coverage Taekwondo is receiving and by improving the equipments used can help regain media's attention.

It's true that during that Beijing Olympic Games, there were many delays due to athletes fixing their protective gears that were out of place due to blocking or from their offensive moves. Due to the delays, some spectators were heard saying "Taekwondo is boring", "it was getting to be interesting until they kept stopping the match".

Basic 'protective gears' are chest guard, forearm guard, shin guard, headgear, and groin cup. WTF says the main thing that delays the matches is for a different reason. One referee who was at the Beijing Olympic Games said "many athletes used equipments as an excuse to get some resting time when they felt fatigued or just needed some time to regroup. It was not necessarily due to the protective gears being out of place."

They are also considering utilizing the 'elbow guards' as a required gear. A referee who was at the Beijing Olympic Games said "there are many injuries that are caused by athletes getting hit with the opponents elbow. For that reason, I believe elbow guards should be mandatory".

- James Kim (james@mookas.us)