Above Mrs. Choi Chun Hi the wife of General Choi Hong Hi receives the induction certificate and plaque
    which was presented by Master George Vitale (r) Sr. Technical Advisor to the Taekwondo Hall of Fame.
    General Choi was  posthumously inducted  into the Taekwondo Hall of Fame on April 10, 2009.  Assisting
    with the presentation is Mr. Eum Joon Shik from Canada a long time personal assistant to General Choi.
    The presentation took place in St.Petersburg, Russia during the XVI World Taekwon-Do Championships.
     READ MORE   (Photo Master George Vitale)




General Choi Hong Hi
(1918 - 2002)


General Choi Hong Hi was born on November 9th, 1918  in the Hwa Dae Myong Chun District
of Korea.  He began study of the martial arts at an early age.  He eventually earned a Black Belt in
less than two years with the help of a Karate teacher he had met while continuing his studies in Japan.

At the end of  World War II he became an officer in the new Korean Army. However during the war
he served in the Japanese Army and was at that time posted in Pyongyang.

While there were various names for the martial arts styles in Korea which featured kicking techniques
in the early years, Choi Hong-hi a politically powerful General in the Korean Army was responsible for
having the martial arts recognized under the name "Tae Kwon Do".  The name Tae Kwon Do which
generally translated means "the way of the feet and the hands" became officially adopted as the name
of the martial art on April 11th, 1955.

With the support of the Korean government, General Choi Hong Hi was responsible for spreading
Tae Kwon Do to various parts of the world.  He utilized teams of instructors comprised of persons
who were the most proficient in demonstrating the art.

In 1959, General Choi was named President of the Korean Taekwon-Do Association.
On March 22, 1966  he created the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) which was
based in Toronto, Canada.


The above photo at left taken by GM Kim Soo shows the tombstone of Gen. Choi Hong-hi at the cemetery for
"Patriots" near Pyongyang,  N. Korea.  GM Kim Soo visited visited the grave to pay his respectt along with a tour
group in April 2005.  While in Korea, GM. Kim Soo also participated in the 50th Anniversary of the establishment
of Taekwondo in Korea.  General Choi Hong hi was born in N. Korea on November 9th, 1918 and passed away on
June 15th, 2002.

     

Kim Soo, Founder & President,
Kim Soo Karate, Inc.
International Chayon-Ryu Martial Arts Association

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