Paris 2024 Olympics: discover taekwondo, its history, its rules, its athletes

Do you like combat sports and martial arts? Then you're bound to have snapped up tickets for the taekwondo tournament , taking place from August 7 to 10, and again from August 29 to 31, 2024 at the Grand Palais in Paris. The just-renovated monument is in fact hosting the events of this discipline of South Korean origin, on the occasion of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Taekwondo comes to us from South Korea, and is closely linked to the country's history. The sport first appeared around 50 BC: in its original form, "taekkyon" (meaning hand-foot) was a martial art combining empty-hand and leg techniques. Various martial arts evolved from this combat sport. In the 20th century, Japanese colonialists forbade Koreans to practice these sports, as they were deemed too symbolic of Korean culture.

Taekwondo in its modern form was born in the 1950s: it is a blend of karate and Japanese martial arts practices, a renewed art developed in Korean martial arts schools. The sport went international in the early 1970s, and was included in the official program of the Olympic Games in 2000.

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In its Olympic version, taekwondo has eight events: -58kg, -68kg, -80kg and +80kg for men, -49kg, -57kg, -67kg and +67kg for women. At the Paralympics, there are five different weight categories for each group (-58kg, -63kg, -70kg, -80kg and +80kg for men and -47kg, -52kg, -57kg, -65kg, +65kg for women).

The aim of taekwondo is to kick and punch your opponent without being hit. A certain number of points are awarded to the fighter according to the number of blows delivered, but also according to technical skill and the area hit. The two taekwondoists clash " on an octagon-shaped combat area, over three rounds of two minutes each." Whoever has the most points at the end of the match wins.

For the Paralympic Games, only athletes with an upper limb disability can fight. Unlike the Olympic version, here only kicks to the trunk are counted. Any blow to the head is considered a foul.

Unsurprisingly, South Korea dominates this discipline, with 12 gold, 3 silver and 7 bronze medals won at the Olympic Games from 2000 to 2020. Also on the podium are China and the USA, with 11 and 10 medals respectively. France is 24th overall, with 3 silver and 5 bronze medals.

However, all is not lost for the French: two athletes are currently ranked number 1 in the world in their category, according to the world federation: we hope thatAlthéa Laurin and Magda Wiet-Hénin will win gold!

According to the French Taekwondo Federation, there are over 230 clubs in the Paris region: there's bound to be one near you! Taekwondo is waiting for you.