The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has launched a reform committee
to make the Korean-originated martial art more interesting and action-packed,
the organization announced on Tuesday.
The 11-member committee, led by WTF vice president and IOC member
Nat Indrapana of Thailand, will hold it first meeting Dec. 7-11
in Seoul and will review the rules of the game as well as the
administration and marketing policies.
The WTF also said it sent a questionnaire to 177 member associations
last month and the responses from all over the world will be used
as references in developing the reform policies.
``Taekwondo is in a transitional period following a change in
WTF leadership,’’ WTF president Choue Chung-won said.
``The WTF aims to transform itself into a more global, professional
and efficient international federation, in line with the IOC's
ongoing reform efforts.’’
Since the Athens Olympics this summer, Taekwondo has been criticized
by the media that the matches are relatively boring and the refereeing
is somewhat subjective when compared to other Olympic sports.
In a press conference in September, Choue said the WTF would
consider allowing the use of punches in the game and giving additional
points to spin-kicks, which require more technique. He also said
the WTF has been talking with sports apparel company Nike to develop
electronic devices to help the judging.
Choue was elected president last June to fill in for former president
Kim Un-yong, whose tenure ends in April. Kim, founder of the WTF,
resigned in January because of a bribery scandal.
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