News & Information

***2013 Maryland State Annual Board of Governors meeting / Elections***

WHO: ALL MSTA Members

WHAT: Board of Governors meeting / Elections

WHEN: Sunday, June 23, 2013 at 5pm

WHERE: Vuong's Martial Arts - 1117 State Route 3 North, Gambrills, MD 21054

HOW: By sending your curriculum vitae to President-Elect Senior Master Joseph Pirczhalski III at msta.president.elect@gmail.com by this Friday, June 21

DUTIES & REQUIREMENTS: Nominations_Duties_2013

*** 2013 Maryland East Coast Open Championship ***

WHO: All Grand Masters, Masters, Referees, Coaches, and Competitors
 
WHAT: Taekwondo Tournament 

WHEN: May 11, 2013 - Pre-registration must be post marked by May 1st to avoid late fee.

WHERE: CCBC – Essex Community College Gymnasium - 7201 Rossville Blvd, Essex, MD 21237

HOW: By downloading this packet - 2013_MD_OPEN_Reg_Packet.pdf


*** 2013 USAT Maryland State Open Championships ***

WHO: All Grand Masters, Masters, Referees, Coaches, and Competitors from all States

WHAT: USAT Qualifier for the 2013 USAT National Championships to be held in Chicago

WHEN: March 16, 2013 - Registration ends 3/02/13 and Late Registration ends 3/09/13

WHERE: University of Maryland (Ritchie Coliseum) - 7950 Baltimore Ave. College Park, MD 20742

HOW: By registering through USAT via     Event Registration

INFO:  2013 USAT MD State Championships' Packet
Venue Map:  UMD CAMPUS MAP


***2013 USAT Events News and Update ***

USAT - 2013 Cadet Divisions Update 

USA Taekwondo formed a task force consisting of USAT Referees, USAT member coaches and an AAC representative to evaluate the Junior Safety Rules (JSR) and how they pertain to the new WTF Cadet (12-14 year olds) divisions.

After review and discussion from this task force, USA Taekwondo will proceed with the following recommendations for the 2013 event season:

• Cadet divisions at the 2013 U.S. Open Taekwondo Championships will follow JSR.
• All 2013 USAT State Championships will run Cadet divisions using JSR.
• At the 2013 USAT National Championships, USAT will offer two black belt Cadet divisions. One division will be classified as Grass Roots, the other World Class.
  • Grass Roots division will follow JSR.
  • World Class division will follow Adult Rules.
• All Cadet color belt divisions will follow JSR at the USAT National Championships

Athletes who are eligible to compete at the USAT National Championships (those qualifying by competing at a 2013 USAT State Championship) can choose what Cadet National Championship division is appropriate for their skill level at the time of registration. Athletes cannot compete in both divisions. Winners of Cadet Grass Roots divisions will not move to the corresponding Cadet World Class divisions. 

If athletes are interested in making the 2013 USAT Cadet National Team and/or competing at the yet to be announced WTF Cadet World Championships, they must compete in the World Class division. Once they make an announcement, proper procedures will be made to have this team compete at the event.

Link to USAT Article
 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

WTF URGENT NOTICE --- ILLEGAL AND INVALID PSS E-FOOT PROTECTOR (Please see PDF Attachment for images)

The World Takewondo Federation has been made aware that there is an illegal and invalid PSS e-foot protector that is apparently being marketed to our members.

This protector is not recognized by the WTF. Therefore, it is illegally marked with the WTF Logo, and it is invalid for use in WTF Promoted or Sanctioned events. Be advised that any athlete who uses invalid PSS equipment is subject to disqualification under Articles 2.1 and 5.2 of the WTF Competition Rules and Interpretation.

Note that the invalid e-foot protector has no marking other than the WTF logo. See page 3 of this notice for a higher resolution image of the invalid product. See page 2 of this notice for pictures of recognized and valid PSS e-foot protectors.

As of February 2013, the World Taekwondo Federation recognizes two Protector and Scorning Systems. One system is produced under the Daedo brand, and the other system is produced under the KP&P brand. See pictures below.

Notice that in addition to the WTF logo there are clear Daedo and KP&P brand marks on the valid protectors. Member National Associations should take the necessary steps to inform your members of the information contained in this notice. 

Jean-Marie Ayer
Secretary General

Link to USAT\WTF Article ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________


2013 USA Taekwondo State and National Championships News and Updates

On Dec. 26, 2012 the WTF changed the age divisions for both poomsae and sparring. Because the USA Taekwondo is the recognized WTF Governing body in the United States, USA Taekwondo will be adopting these new d ivisions.

USA Taekwondo is currently working with its Rules Committee and Board of Directors to make the appropriate changes.

The Poomsae changes are as follows:

Changed Divisions: 

• Junior individual poomsae divisions (male and female) changed from 14-17 years old to 15-17 years old.
• 1st pairs division changed from 14-29 to 18-29 years old.
• 1st team (male and female) divisions changed from 14-29 to 18-29 years old.

New divisions added:

• Junior co-ed pairs 15-17 years old (two members, one male, one female).
• Junior male team 15-17 years old (three members, all male).
• Junior female team 15-17 years old (three members, all female).
• Cadet (12-14) Individual poomsae.

**In 2013, USAT State Championships can choose to run Cadet, or younger, Pairs or Team divisions, as the WTF has not yet adopted rules for these divisions and any ruling will not take place until April. States may choose to use the USAT rules regarding pairs and teams.

The WTF has yet to determine if there will be poomsae competition at a TBD 2013 Cadet World Championships. This announcement is not likely until April. USAT is working diligently to determine the best route for the poomsae program.

Freestyle Poomsae:

USAT applauds the success of the 2012 U.S. freestyle team at the recent World Championships and encourages all interested poomsae competitors to work for greater successes as the sport develops.

WTF has indicated that freestyle judging and standards are likely to be modified in the next several months and as soon as USAT is informed of the changes, it will make an announcement to the membership. Until the changes are made, USAT will not require freestyle poomsae qualification at State Championships or other USAT sanctioned competitions for Nationals or Team Trials. However, USAT encourages all promoters of USAT sanctioned events, including State Championships to offer freestyle poomsae competition under current rules. Such competitions will not be qualifiers for Nationals. When USAT receives the necessary information from WTF, it will be posted.

It is USAT's intention to hold an open National freestyle championship competition at the 2013 USAT National Championships in Chicago. However, these plans are tentative. Final decision will depend on the timing and nature of the rule changes.

USAT apologizes for this uncertainty. We will make every effort to keep our membership informed of developments and changes as soon as we receive notice.

The Sparring changes are as follows:

Changed Divisions:

• Senior divisions are now classified as 17 and older.
• Junior divisions are now classified as 15-17 year olds.

**Athletes must turn 17 by December 31, 2013 in order to compete in the Senior division at any 2013 USAT State Championship or National Championships. 17 year olds can compete in both Junior and Senior divisions.

**USAT uses the date December 31 of the given year (December 31, 2013) to determine the age of all competitors. Example: an athlete turns 14 on October 26, 2013 they would compete as a 14 year old in 2013, even though they are 13 years old at the time of the event.

****Athletes cannot compete “up” or “down” in age divisions.

New divisions added:

Cadet divisions are now classified as 12-14 and the new weight categories are below.

Rules:

Because the Cadet divisions were just created by the WTF with no special rules for those divisions, the USAT will continue to follow Junior Safety rules for the time being. We will establish a task force to evaluate the original purpose of Junior Safety Rules, and the current efficacy and future role of special rules for this age group.

Miscellaneous Information:

The WTF has yet to determine if there will be a 2013 Cadet World Championships. An announcement is not likely until April 2013. USAT High Performance Department is working diligently to determine the best route for our Cadet program, and we are very excited by these new opportunities for our athlete pipeline. For questions please contact USA Taekwondo directly, by email, Director of Events Travis Oosthoek (travis.oosthoek@usa-taekwondo.us)

Link to USAT Article 

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***Global Taekwondo Internship Program***

The Korean Cultural Center at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Washington D.C. is currently recruiting regional Taekwondo schools to host visiting students from Korea for a three-month teaching internship, as part of the Global Taekwondo Internship Program. The purpose of the program is to allow outstanding Korean college students studying Taekwondo to intern and teach Taekwondo abroad while improving their language skills and cultural awareness, while also giving local schools the opportunity to work with an experienced Taekwondo practitioner trained in Korea who can support and supplement the school’s own training programs.

Global TKD Internship Program PDF Guide

For further information Please Contact:

Korean Cultural Center
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA
2370 Massachusetts Avenue Northwest
Washington , D.C. 20008
Office: 1.202.587.6162
Fax: 1.202.986.7417
Cellular: 1.202.725.6840

www.dynamic-korea.com
www.koreaembassy.org