Hwa Rang Do's Year of Evolution, Strength and
the Dawn of a New Era

Hwa Rang Do debuts unique weapon fighting methods, Gumtoogi (Dynamic Sword Fighting) and Bongtoogi (Dynamic Weapon Fighting), in this year's competition

It is fitting that with the recent promotion of Supreme Grandmaster Dr. Joo Bang Lee’s eldest son to 8th Dan Grandmaster Taejoon Lee, this year’s World Hwa Rang Do Championships would be one for the history books… and it was.

For the first time in Hwa Rang Do’s history, the World Championships featured a total of 7 separate tournaments with up to 5 divisions in each – which included the debut of Hwa Rang Do’s weapon fighting methods, Gumtoogi (Sword Fighting) and Bongtoogi (Stick Fighting).  This new opportunity for weapon fighting owes much to Grandmaster Taejoon Lee’s groundbreaking invention of the Hache Hogu (Leg Protector) armor, as an attachment to traditional Kumdo & Kendo body armor.

Overall the World Championships included tournaments in:

1. Open Hand Forms
2. Weapon Forms
3. Kick-Punch-Throw Fighting
4. Kick-Punch-Throw Fighting (Teams)
5. Submission Fighting (Grappling)
6. Stick Fighting (Long Staff)
7. Sword Fighting (Long Sword)

The mind blowing thing is that, many of the individual Tae Soo Do & Hwa Rang Do participants competed in every single tournament, with the tournament champions being determined based on their overall performance in all 7 events.

Competitors had to switch been uniforms and gear throughout the day, as a new event was about to start. 
From the sparring event requiring head gear, gloves and chest gear…

… to the heavy 100% cotton grappling uniform for the submission fighting event…

… to 20 lbs of full-body armor and 2 distinct weapons for the Sword Fighting & Stick Fighting…

The competitors not only demonstrated incredible athleticism and skill in each event, but an incredible level of endurance to be able to compete at peak levels, with each event requiring the mastery of a different set of martial skills.  There’s truly no competition like this in the world.

At the end of the day, 4 incredible warriors were crowned as these year’s champions, respective to their divisions. 
These extraordinary champions are:

Jokyo Nim Matthew Kim – Hwarang of the Year: Best Overall Male Black Sash
Jokyo Nim Alyssa Marlenee – Wonhwa of the Year: Best Overall Female Black Sash
Instr. Joey Klein – Male Rangdo of the Year: Best Overall Male Color Sash/Belt
Jennifer Nelson – Female Rangdo of the Year: Best Overall Female Color Sash/Belt

The World Most Comprehensive Martial Art is now more comprehensive than ever and they show no signs of halting their rapid evolution. 

According to Grandmaster Taejoon Lee, for next year’s tournament they already plan to include at least 2 more events, Twin-Short Stick Fighting, Twin-Short Sword Fighting and the addition of Full-Contact Fighting in the Hwa Rang Do Color Sashes and Black Sash Division in the works.

As Grandmaster Lee has stated many times, “The goal of Hwa Rang Do is not to specialize in any particular aspect of martial skills, but to master everything and thus maximize your human potential.”

Hwa Rang Do will forever be an evolving art, constantly pushing new boundaries and forging a path for the rest of the industry in a martial arts category all of its own.