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Don't mess with these grannies

AFP, INCHEON, SOUTH KOREA
Saturday, May 19, 2007, Page 16

South Korean practitioners of taekwondo, the country's traditional martial art, show off their skills at a gym in Incheon, west of Seoul. PHOTO: AFP

Their friends may settle for a stroll in the park but South Korea's taekwondo grannies are made of sterner stuff when it comes to exercise.

Shattering stacks of roof tiles with a single powerful punch is part of the daily training routine for the formidably tough members of the Grandma Taekwondo Federation demonstration team, aged in their 60s and 70s.

In white robes about, 20 women — including 12 proudly sporting black belts — practice various chops, kicks and other sparring techniques at a gym in the city of Incheon, west of Seoul.

Sharp yells of "Ha!" "Hap!" or "Pasha!" resound through the second-floor matted gym during the gruelling two-hour workout.

One black-belted granny dexterously cruises past her peers who hold rubber target boards at different angles. She knocks them down in the blink of an eye with a series of graceful kicks and punches.

"All these women have won black belts through an official test at the Kukkiwon (World Taekwondo Headquarters)," said Yoon Yeo-Ho, a taekwondo master and founder of the team, which was launched in 1989.

"They use actual roof tiles and wooden boards to break for public demonstrations. They practice a lot and harden their bones enough to smash them (the boards) into pieces."

The team's 22 members are aged between 58 and 78, with 16 of them in their 70s. They make it a rule to exercise at least two hours a day and six days per week under Yoon's guidance.

"At the beginning, it was a simple idea that taekwondo could help these grannies improve their health and that uniforms would look good on them," Yoon said.

The team now performs 16 times a year on average at various ceremonies or festivals at home and abroad — in China, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

At the start of the session the team recites "Hello" in Japanese, Chinese, English and Thai to prepare for future foreign tours.

The tours fit the aims of the Seoul-based World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).

"As the nation where taekwondo was born, we're responsible for making the sport enjoyed and loved by men and women of all ages," WTF President Choue Chungwon said.

"What matters is how we can let taekwondo take root in the world, not how many medals we can earn from global competitions."

At the Incheon gym, each grandma seems full of confidence, satisfaction and fun.

"If any punk gets drunk and tries to do something stupid, I think I can knock him out in a single blow," said Park Yeong-Ja, 72, a second-grade black belt practitioner, clenching her fists in a mock offensive gesture.

More than just exercise, taekwondo is a way of life.

She is the team's "smashing ace" who successfully broke a stack of 10 wooden boards during the latest public demonstration.

"Is my husband afraid of me? No. As I am healthier than I used to be, he likes it. He even brags about it to his friends," Park said with a smile.

But Park said her main delight was bringing her weight down from 80kg to 67kg over several years.

Ji Bok-Yeon, 75, team leader and one of the best roof-tile smashers, said taekwondo is not just a hobby but therapy for her rectal cancer.

"Doctors first saved my life by giving me a 30-month anti-cancer treatment and taekwondo then gave me a cure. I no longer take anti-cancer medicines after a nine-year workout," Ji said.

Ji is a serious enthusiast. She has had a photo taken of herself in her taekwondo robe for use at her funeral and has asked teammates to attend in uniform.

The exercise is also a social occasion at which grannies can chat, joke and gossip over coffee or tea during a break or after training.

"I was formerly a shy person but now I feel like a totally different character," said Lee Jeong-Suk, 68, who also holds a black belt and took up the martial art to overcome depression after her husband's death.

Taekwondo, an Olympic event since 2000, is practiced by some 60 million people in 182 countries across the world, according to the WTF.

The federation in 2004 launched reforms to bolster its status as a global sport as the IOC reviews all 28 Olympic events. Some may be dropped in future.

The federation says its reforms focus on making taekwondo more commercially successful and more interesting.

The grannies fit the bill, attracting increasing public recognition.

"Once out in a park after appearing on a TV show, we were all surprised to see kids scrambling to get our autographs," said Yoon.
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