History
The origins of Taekwondo, which go back two thousand years, lie in Korea. During its history, this sport has been known by various names, like Taekyon or Subak. Its official name nowadays, Taekwondo, was announced in 1955; a year later, the first championships were held. The Korean Taekwondo Federation was founded in 1965, and the World Taekwondo Federation was founded in 1973. During the same year the first World Championship took place.
In recent years, taekwondo has become a modern amateur sport yet taekwondo has maintained its tradition and spirit of martial science. Today, taekwondo is one of the most popular international sports being practised in 157 countries with its population of more than 50 million throughout the world.
Olympic History
1980 was an important year for the sport, since the International Olympic Committee (IOC) acknowledged Taekwondo as an Olympic sport. It was included as a display event in two successive Olympic Games: in Seoul (1988) and Barcelona (1992). Taekwondo was included on the Olympic Games competition schedule for the first time at the Sydney Games in 2000.