In July, Dave Flander and Master Gerry Reilly travelled to Korea for the annual World Taekwondo Chungdokwan Federation Summer Camp, joining attendees from many other countries for a week of training, competition and cultural experiences. The first day, Wednesday, started with evening training at the Chungdokwan HQ led by Grandmaster Shin Byeong Hyun. There then followed two full intense days of training covering basics, poomsae, sparring and self-defence with a variety of high ranking guest instructors at the Seoul National University of Education. This provided a fabulous opportunity to work with partners from across the world. At the end of the second day, all the attendees attended a celebration dinner for the 80th Anniversary of the Chungdokwan with Grandmaster Park Hae Man, President of the Chungdokwan as the very special guest of honour.
The summer camp is not just about training but also culture and social opportunities. On the Sunday, we then headed down to the Taekwondwon in Muju for sightseeing and of course more training, followed by a group dinner on the way back. The Monday then concluded the camp with a visit to the Kukkiwon with more training, some shopping, and another training session in the evening at the Chungdokwan HQ. Tuesday saw more shopping and another visit to the Kukkiwon before traveling back to the UK on the Wednesday.
Next up was competition day. Another fun (and successful) day with both Dave and Master Gerry returning with gold medals in the individuals, and Master Gerry with a bronze from the synchronised team event as part of the European team!
Bluewave plans to attend the 2025 WTCF Summer Camp. This trip will be open adult senior grades. Please let us know early if you might be interested in attending.
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