International Taekwon-Do Federation

The International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) was founded on 22 March 1966 in Seoul by Choi Hong-hi.^[1][2] It was formed with associations from nine countries, including Korea, the United States and West Germany.^[2]

Headquarters #

After the South Korean government stopped supporting the federation, Choi moved to Austria and established new headquarters in Vienna.^[1]

Patterns #

The official ITF syllabus has 24 patterns (tul).^[1]

Divisions after 2001 #

A 2001 congress chose Choi Jung-hwa as successor. In 2002 Choi Hong-hi rescinded that decision and, after his death later that year, the federation divided. Three groups are commonly called ITF-Vienna, ITF-Poland and ITF-UK, and Austrian courts awarded the Vienna headquarters to one of them.^[1] Because several groups use the same name, check which one a school or event belongs to.

Relationship to World Taekwondo #

The ITF is separate from World Taekwondo, which governs Olympic-style competition. The ITF and WT developed different patterns, terminology and competition rules after the 1970s.