This years 4 Nations event will take place on Saturday 22nd November in Caerphilly, South Wales. The format this year will be similar to 2007 with the addition of a UKTA presentation ceremony. The event will be a black tie dinner dance and celebration of Grand Master Rhee's 70th birthday.

All Male Black Belts over 16 are invited to try out for the team of 6 which will represent the Republic of Ireland. This is a great chance to gain invaluable International experience before next years European and World Championships.

Click here for poster. Click here for Information.

Congratulations to Ms Audrey Condon from Waterford for winning two Gold and a Silver at the World Veteran ITF Taekwon-Do Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Ms Condon won Gold in the silver class (40-49) -61kg Sparring, Gold in the Power Breaking and Silver in the 3rd Dan Patterns.

This was an amazing achievement for the former World Champion who 21 years ago won a Gold and Silver at the 1987 World Championships in Greece. It was made even more special for Ms Condon as accompanying her on the long trip to Uzbekistan was her Instructor Mr John Jacob 6th Degree and her former Coach Senior Master Francis Barrett 8th Degree both from Waterford who represented the RITA as Umpires. During her Gold Medal win in the Sparring Ms Condon was cheered on from the stands by Ms Valerie Keane 6th Degree and members of St Marks Taekwon-Do School.

Ms Condon with National Coach Mr Stephen Doyle 6th Degree started the competition with the 3rd Dan Patterns. After beating Australia in the semi-final she faced the local Uzbek competitor in the Final. Both showed excellent technique and it was very close but it was the Uzbekistan who got the result giving Ireland the Silver medal. Next up was the -61kg sparring. Once again Ms Condon faced an Uzbekistan competitor in the final after beating South Africa in the semi. It was a great display from Ms Condon who dominated both rounds of the Final to win the Gold. The power breaking event on the last day of the competition gave Ireland its second Gold with Ms Condon dominating once again.

There were over 500 competitors from 40 countries represented at the 8th Junior & 3rd Veteran World ITF Championships and the level of competition was very high. The event was also live on the National TV sports station. As usual the DPR Korea team dominated the Gold medal awards with some stunning performances but the highlight for the large crowds was the final of the Junior Male Team Sparring. After narrowly beating the Uzbekistan team in the quarter final and then Estonia in the semi, DPR Korea faced Russia in the Final. After drawing the first fight Russia lost the next two meaning they had to win the remaining two fights to force a playoff. With the locals creating a fantastic atmosphere cheering on Russia they did the impossible and won both fights. The final went to a playoff which after a display of great Taekwon-Do sparring the Russian just about deserved the win.

Slovakia will host the next Junior & Veteran World Championships in 2010 and it was announced that DPR Korea will host the World Adult Championships in 2011.

Students from St.Mark's Taekwon-Do School travelled to Thaskent, Uzbekistan to attend an ITF International Seminar conducted by Senior Master Hwang 8th Deg and to cheer on Ms. Condon on her great achievement while representing Ireland.

Ms. Valerie Keane 6th Degree attended the ITF Umpire course conducted by Grand Master Leong Wai Meng and successfully achieved an ITF Umpire Passport. A fantastic learning experience was had by all!

The RITA will soon be giving the option of receiving the Black Belt Newsletters by email instead of by post. If any Black Belt would like to receive the Next Newsletter by email please inform the National Secretary in writing either by post or email. Newsletters will still be sent by post if no email address is provided.

The RITA are currently updating the Black Belt database and ask all Black Belts to complete and return the questionnaire that was sent out in the last newsletter. A digital version (excel) is available which makes it easy to email the information and can be downloaded here. Any information submitted will not be given to any third parties and will be treated in strict confidence.

Over 30 years may seem a lifetime to some people, and to be in any organisation for this long is practically unheard of, but that’s how long Ms. Valerie Keane 6th Degree Senior Instructor to St. Mark’s and Naas Taekwon-Do School has been learning, living, teaching and passing on General Choi’s Art of Taekwon-Do

All of her children in Taekwon-Do are so proud and excited to see Ms. Keane not only presented with her 6th Degree Certificate by her Instructor Senior Master Robert Howard 8th Degree in her own School St. Mark’s which has been bustling with students for 26 years but also to hear that Ms. Keane has been nominated by Master John Ward to go into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame in Pittsburgh in November.

For Ms. Keane and all her achievements to be supported and recognised as a true Martial Artist Globally is a phenomenal achievement, which all of her children in Taekwon-Do truly love and would like to full heartedly Congratulate their Instructor. 

Obituary from ITF HQ

After the successful conclusion of the 6 days-long consultation and seminar on the Taekwon-Do technical issue and tournament rule revision with Grand Master Rhee, Master Hwang and other Korean Masters in Pyongyang, D.P.R. Korea, Master Ri Yongsok, 8th dan holder, ITF Technical Committee Chairman, on the way back to Pyongyang from the visit to his wife’s parents house stationed in a far-away Northern Province of D.P.R. Korea, became victim of a serious car accident on the highway together with two other fellow riders, having been hospitalized. Due to a serious brain damage, next day , on Saturday 12th of July, with two other fellow riders, he passed away in hospital at the age of 46 years to our deep heart-felt regret. His funeral service was held in Pyongyang in sorrow and mourning of his family members and the funeral service participants.

Born 10th December 1962, he has made a great contribution to the ITF development by having pioneering ITF Taekwon-Do in Russia, spreading ITF Taekwon-Do as the ITF Technical Committee Chairman in many countries through the Taekwon-Do seminars and demonstrations and the active participation of the Taekwon-Do encyclopedia editing.

He, with a great contribution to the ITF development, will be forever alive in all ITF members´ hearts and memory.

ITF HQ

The Pro-Taekwondo World Final One will be held on 13th of December 2008. in Zagreb, Croatia. The prize is $50,000 and the Final will be broadcast throughout the world. European elimination tournaments (winner gets the right to participate among best 8 in Zagreb) will be held in:

Maribor, Slovenia – first half of October (final date TBC)
Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria – November 15th, 2008.
St. Petersburg, Russia – second half of November 2008.

The eliminators are open to all adult male Black Belt Taekwon-Do practioners (+80kg). Any RITA members interested in competing please contact the National Coach.

Futher information on www.pro-taekwondo.com

The RITA National ITF Instructors course took place on Sunday 6th July. Senior ITF 8th Degree Masters, Master Howard, Master Phelan and Master Barrett conducted the course. With over 100 years of experience between them those attending were able to get advice on all aspects of being an Instructor.

The Syllabus for being National class C, B and A Instructors were covered. Each of the Senior Masters took a group and went through the syllabus in detail explaining what needs to be taught and how to teach it. All aspects of Patterns, Sparring and Power were shown and explained. During the course of the day, Master Howard VII arranged a discussion group about the importance of introducing new ways of teaching young children.

Congratulations to Ms Audrey Condon (centre) who has been chosen to represent Ireland at the 3rd Veteran World Championships that will take place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan from 17th to 21st September 2008. Ms Condon 3rd Degree Black Belt won Gold and Silver at the 1987 World Championships. She will be competing in Sparring, Patterns and Breaking events.

Seen here in the photo with members of the Senior and Junior squad and Czech National team members Jan Mracek and Katerina Cizkova at a recent training session in Athlone.

For more information please visit the Official Website or click here for information pack. (Word)

Students from Boyne Valley Taekwon Do School participated in the recent Senior Masters Seminar on Patterns and Power hosted by St. Mark’s Taekwon-Do School in Tallaght. This was our second year taking part in the Seminar all agreed that it was thoroughly worth the trip. Everyone who attended found it a very educational and fun experience leaving with some valuable insights into the various patterns and different techniques.........

Click here to read the full report

The Current World -78kg Sparring Champion and the new -85kg European Champion Jan Mraček will be training with the Irish Squad. Jan is Captain of the Czech National team who are World and European Gold Medallists in Team Patterns. Accopanying Jan is Kateřina Čížková who is a member of the Czech female team who won Gold at the recent European Championships.

This is a great opportunity to train and spar with one of the best fighters in the World. Check the Black Belt Squad section for next squad sessions.

For more information contact the National Coach, Mr Stephen Doyle 6th Degree. Email coach@rita-itf.org or phone 087-6986491

During the summer Selection for the Republic of Ireland Male team will begin for the Annual 4 Nations Challenge. The event will take place in the UK in November. This year it is hoped that a Senior Female and Junior Male/Female team will compete in a friendly against a UK select or one of the UK Nations. All RITA Black Belts members are invited to attend squad training.

For more information contact the National Coach, Mr Stephen Doyle 6th Degree. Email coach@rita-itf.org or phone 087-6986491

Congratulations to David Freeman from St Marks who won a Silver medal in -57kg Sparring at the recent European Championships in Croatia. This was a great achievement as he dislocated his shoulder during the semi-final and the doctors did not want him to continue. Though in great pain he had to spar an extra time against his Greek opponent and won comfortably in the end. Unfortunately Mr Freeman was unable to contest the final due to doctors orders which meant Russia got the Gold. He was unlucky to lose out to Russia in the quarter finals of the 1st Dan Patterns. The judges gave a draw so it went to a play off pattern which the Russian won. He also got through to the final round in Special Technique and finished in the top ten.

Martin Mahoney from Galway had no favours in the -64kg sparring. After dropping from his normal -71kg section he got the Ukrainian World Champion in the 1st round. In a competitive spar the Ukrainians experience gave him the edge and Mr Mahoney lost out. In the power event he came 10th which was a very creditable result.

The RITA would like to congratulate both our competitors who performed so well and also to our Umpires Senior Master Barrett, Master Howard and Mr O'Donnell who showed why Ireland has some of the best Umpires in the ITF.

With 700 representatives from 31 countries this was the largest European Championships so far and the competition was of a very high standard. The next European Championships will be held in Slovenia during April 2009 and for the first time will have a Veterans division.

Full results can be found on the Official Website

Don’t miss your chance to train under one of Ireland’s most Senior ITF Taekwon-Do Masters. Senior Master Francis Barrett VIII Degree will conduct an official ITF International Instructors Course on Sat.18th & Sun.19th October 2008.

The first day of the seminar is open to members of all ranks, while the full two-day course is open to 1st Kup and Black Belts.

Click here to download Information.
Click here to download Application Form.

On a cold Sunday morning April 6th the Female members of the RITA travelled to Senior Master Howard’s Dojang at the Cabra Parkside Community & Sports Complex, Dublin to attend the annual female Class, a day long training session from 10am-4pm conducted by Ms Valerie Keane 5th Degree Irelands senior female Instructor.

After the initial greetings and chat (it wouldn’t be a Female class without a bit of a chat) the morning began with a warm up and then Ms Keane took students through the basic fundamental movements spending time on sign wave, basic blocks and stances, going into great detail on the correct method for performing each movement, at all times questions were encouraged and clear explanations were given.

The afternoon began with patterns. Ms Keane went through each pattern discussing application and method of each movement giving a lot of time to each student and making corrections when necessary. There wasn’t a student that didn’t benefit from her patience and perseverance, as Ms Keane cast her Eagle eye over us, our mistakes and bad habits were drawn to or attention in her light-hearted manner.

As the day moved on it was time to bring in the Timber and Tiles for the Power testing part of the class. This was conducted in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere where students were encouraged to move out of their comfort zone and try techniques that they were afraid of or had never tried before. Ms Keane put great time and effort into explaining the right technique for each break performed. Some females participating had never broken Timber let alone Tiles and came away with a great sense of satisfaction and self-confidence after achieving breaks they hadn’t done before.

All too soon 4pm arrived another successful Female class had come to an end.

Ms Keane generous as ever had gifts for everyone, kids young and old went home with arms full of pens, bookmarks, wristbands, (broken autographed boards) and memories of a great day looking forward to next year.
  
Audrey Condon 3rd Degree Instructor,
Kilmacow Taekwon-Do School

Click here for photos

Instructors from St.Mark's, Naas, Stillorgan, AIB & Blessington Taekwon-Do Schools attended a Code of Ethics & Awareness Course presented with their Certificates by Jerome Howe from the Irish Sports Council!.

On Sat 29th March the Republic of Ireland Taekwon-Do Association held a Black Belt examination in the Spa Hotel Lucan. The examining panel was made up of the three most Senior Master Black Belts in Ireland, Master Robert Howard, Master Anthony Phelan and Master Francis Barrett all 8th Degree Senior Master Black Belts with over 100 years experience between them.

After a two hour class at which each student had the chance to be personally corrected by all 3 Masters and have any question answered the Black Belt exam began. Those doing the grading were tested on all aspects of the art including Patterns, Techniques, breaking wood, 1-Step, Free sparring, 2 on to 1 Sparring and Taekwon-Do History & Terminology.

Successfully promoted were:

Mr. Martin Roe - St.Mark's School promoted to 2nd Degree
Amanda Kane - Old Bawn School promoted to 1st Degree
Ciaran Pollock - Old Bawn School promoted to 1st Degree
James Mannion - AIB School promoted to 1st Degree

The RITA would like to congratulate those who were promoted.

Congratulations to the RITA Black Belts (see below) who were recently awarded the title of National Umpire after they successfully passed their umpire course and exams.  All the umpires took part in the recent one day RITA National Umpire course held in Stillorgan Taekwon-Do School and passed their written exam.  The ‘B’ Class umpires were put through their paces at the Leinster Open Championships where they had to centre referee several sparring bouts under the watchful eye of the RITA’s Umpire Committee (Master Robert G. Howard and Mr Mark O’Donnell).  ‘The umpires did very well’ said Master Howard afterwards. “But it’s very important that they practice their new skills between tournaments so that they maintain the high standard which is expected of them” he added.  The Umpire Committee is looking forward to seeing all the new umpires in action on the 10th of May at the Connaught Open Championships in Galway.

Promoted to ‘A’ Class National Umpire

Ms. Marina O'Donnell (Galway)
Mr. Martin Roe (St Marks)
Mr. Mark Pollock (Old Bawn)

Promoted to ‘B’ Class National Umpire

Ms. Audrey Condon (Kilmacow)
Mr. Graham Ford (AIB)
Ms. Denise Hanrahan (Carrick-on-Suir)

Promoted to ‘C’ Class National Umpire

Mr. Gerald Byrne (Old Bawn)
Mr. Noel O' Donovan (Cork)
Mr. Conor Dunne (Athlone)
Mr. Jason Ford (AIB)
Mr. Eamon Kennedy, (Boyne Valley)
Mr. David Freeman, (St Mark’s)
Mr. Thomas Dalton, (Carrick-on-Suir)
Mr. Eamon Gilson (Rowlagh)

Mark Sweeney and his son Michael age 5 yrs who are members of St.Mark's Taekwon-Do School were recently promoted to 9th Kup. Both Father & Son train together with assistant Instructor in St.Mark's Mr. Martin Roe 1st Degree and they have never missed a class, since joining in November last. Their performance at the grading was very good, however, Michael was stunning and won an award for achieving an "A" level for his 9th Kup grading, first time for such an award to be given by Ms. Valerie Keane ITF International Examiner. When a 5 year old could say the 5 tenets of Taekwon-Do perfectly with his techniques as good, no other level could be granted. Long may their success continue!

St. Mark's Taekwon-Do School were hosts to this years first Black Belt Master Class. Conducted by Irelands two most Senior Masters it was a great chance for those attending to go over their Techniques and Patterns. Senior Master Robert Howard and Senior Master Anthony Phelan both 8th Degree Masters went though fundamental techniques and the correct way to perform them as taught by General Choi. All those attending were able to perform their Patterns from 1st to 6th Degree and have them corrected individually. The Masters encouraged discussions on correct technique and everyone enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere of the class with Master Howard sharing his 40 years of Taekwon-Do experience and knowledge.

With 200 competitors from all 4 Irish Provinces the 2008 Leinster Open was a great success. Hosted by St Marks Taekwon-Do School the event attracted competitors not only from the RITA but also many from the other Taekwon-Do Associations too. It was a good day for St Marks as they picked up the overall awards in the Junior and Senior categories. David Freeman got in some good practice for the European Championships in May by winning Gold in Black Belt lightweight sparring, Patterns and Special Technique while Kenneth Hooper won Gold in red/blue belt 15-17 Sparring and 12-17 red belt patterns.

The RITA would like to express its appreciation to all the Umpires who attended and to the Tournament & Umpire Committees for making the event an enjoyable experience for everyone.

The next RITA Tournament is the Connaught Open which takes place in Salt Hill, Galway on May 10th.

For a full list of winners please vist the Tournaments page.

Russian Andrey Krylov has won the 1st Pro Taekwon-Do Tournament with a K.O. of Woytek Kaszowski from Canada in the Final. The event was held in Zagreb, Croatia and was attended by Grand Master Rhee, ITF President Mr Chang Ung and EITF President Master Nobilo. The event was shown live on Croatian TV. Mr Floyd Keane 6th Degree was chosen to be one of the Umpires for this historic event.

Visit http://www.pro-taekwondo.com to see a video of the event.

Sunday 11th November saw Naas Taekwon-Do School host its annual Self-Defence and Sparring seminar.  As always the event was well supported by many schools throughout the day.  There was strong attendance particularly from the very young students which as much as learning new techniques they found quite entertaining also.  Senior Master Francis Barrett 8th degree delivered his usual detailed self-defence seminar in the morning.  Starting off with the basic releases and grabs and ultimately working up to some more advanced techniques such as choke holds and breaks towards the end of the session.  As is the norm the front line of the class (i.e. the black belts) became the guinea pigs for the morning, subjecting themselves to the mercy of Senior Master Barrett (much to the entertainment of the junior members).  To finish, Senior Master Barrett opened questions up to the floor to allow students to pose their own questions and scenarios to further develop their own self defence knowledge.  This produced many questions from students to which Senior Master Barrett found a solution for all.

After lunch former RITA National Coach Mr. Floyd Keane 6th degree brought the seminar up a gear with a very fast paced sparring seminar.  Commencing with the breakdown of the points structure within tournament sparring, Mr. Keane explained how judges award points in a tournament situation.  This gave a good refresher to seasoned students but moreover gave much value to the junior grades as they approach sparring grade.  This was followed by kicking drills to improve speed and agility for sparring purposes.  Later in the afternoon students were paired off to practice defensive sparring techniques and improve responses when on the receiving end of an attack.  These drills later showed the students had increased in confidence when confronted with an attack minded opponent.  Mr. Keane then went on to instruct on how to manage a 2 onto 1 attack.  Valuable tips were shared and again the benefit was visible in the student’s performance throughout the afternoon.   The afternoon finished on a lighter note with 7 onto 1 sparring.  While many of the students managed to hold there own (for a few seconds at least) it was the junior colour belts who seemed the most enthusiastic and who had the belief of victory.  Long may this belief last!  The support at this event every year is testament that Senior Master Barrett & Mr. Keane have once again delivered in spades and I for one will be looking forward to next years seminar.  Finally, special thanks must be given to Ms. Valerie Keane V without whom the event could not be run.

John Paul Nestor 3rd Deg. Instructor
St. Mark’s Taekwon-Do School

Mr Pat Rabbitte T.D. was presented with an honourary 3rd Degree Black Belt by the Republic of Ireland Taekwon-Do Association on Saturday night last.

The presentation took place at a special event held in the Lucan Spa Hotel to mark the 25th anniversary of St Mark’s Taekwon-Do School. Mr Rabbitte was presented with his 3rd Degree Black Belt and International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) certificate by the President of the RITA, Senior Master Robert Howard 8th Degree. He was also awarded the title of “Honourary President of St Mark’s Taekwon-Do School” by the school’s instructor, Ms Valerie Keane 5th Degree.

The attendees were also treated to spectacular demonstration of the Korean martial art by the Black Belt demonstration team.

Click here for some photos.
Click here to read more about 25 years of St. Marks

The RITA bi-annual Black Belt exam took place on saturday 22nd October in the Spa Hotel Lucan. The Grading was under the RITA Masters Panel of Senior Master Robert J. Howard 8th Degree, Senior Master Anthony Phelan 8th Degree, Senior Master Francis Barrett 8th Degree, Master Paul Kavanagh 7th Degree and Master Robert G. Howard 7th Degree.

Congratulations to all those who were successfully promoted.

Promoter to 1st Degree Black Belt

Eamon Gilson  Rowlagh School
Niamh Herrity  Stillorgan School
Patrick Nicholson Stillorgan School
David Fallon Naas School
Cormac Mc Garry  Ck-On-Suir School

Promoted to 3rd Degree:
Mr. Richard Barber  Stillorgan School

Promoted to 6th Degree:
Mr. Stephen Doyle  Old Bawn School
Mr. Floyd Keane     St. Mark's School

We are delighted to announce the promotion to VII Degree of the RITA’s newest master, Master Robert Howard. Master Howard travelled to England to attend an International Instructors Course and Black Belt Grading conducted by Grand Master Rhee Ki Ha IX Degree. On Sunday 2nd September, having performed the final Taekwon-Do pattern, Tong-Il, and an impressive series of breaking techniques, Grand Master Rhee promoted Master Howard to VII Degree.

Master Howard makes history by not only being the youngest person to achieve the rank of 7th Degree Master Black Belt in Europe but also becoming the first family to have father and son ITF Masters.

Master Howard has put in trojan work for the RITA over the years, opening schools in Galway, Athlone, and Stillorgan, as well as working on many committees and projects. Master Howard also won a gold medal at the 1994 World Championships in Malaysia, as well as many other international awards. He was awarded the title of Best Umpire at both the World Championships in 2005 & European Championships in 2006.

Congratulations to Master Howard on this great achievement from all the Masters, Instructors and Students of the RITA.

Congratulations to the Irish Squad who won Silver and Bronze medals at the 2008 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia. David Freeman repeated his Silver medal in the -57kg Sparring while the Male Team of Adam Fox, Leon McSherry, Mark Jordan, Joe Gill, Martin Mahoney and David Freeman won Bronze in the Team Patterns.

Click here for some photos.

Ireland picked up 2 more medals on the final day of competition at the 2005 European Championships. With literally the last two kicks of the day both the Ireland Male and Female Teams won bronze in the Team Power. The Irish Squad won 7 medals in total which was a great result.

On day one the Senior Female Team won Silver in the Team Patterns. Ross Byrne and Eimer McAneny started day two off by winning Bronze in their respective sparring sections. Deborah Manning won Silver in the Senior Female Power with Mark Pollock finishing the day with Bronze in the Senior Male Power. Congratulations to all the Squad members for their dedication and effort.

The competition was declared a great success by the AETF and the RITA would like to thank everyone involved in helping the Tournament to run so smoothly.

Click here to see full year

Squad Training and Trials for the National Colour Belt Team are cancelled until further notice.  Instructors will be sent out full information in the near future

More info, contact Master Robert Howard on (087) 6987624 or Mr Mark O'Donnell on (087) 7970646

RITA Instructors and Students can now view the TKD Supplies stock online. Click here to see our latest prices and stock.