The World Taekwondo Extraordinary Council meeting took place by videoconference.
The federation continues to work to ensure that taekwondo is able to emerge from the current global coronavirus crisis.
World Taekwondo President Chungwon Choue opened the meeting by expressing the federation’s sincere condolences to all those who have been affected by COVID-19 around the world, announces worldtaekwuondo.org.
World Taekwondo President Choue had something to say:
“This pandemic has really changed our lives. I sincerely pray that we continue to be healthy and safe. Our thoughts are with all those who have been, and continue to be, affected.”
“While the situation is bad for everyone, I believe that every adversity brings opportunities. Video conferencing has become the New Norm for us and offers a sustainable and cost-effective way for us to remain connected, long into the future. We have also been able to reach out to the grassroots more directly; engaging athletes to show their training sessions online and organising online education course. We have even seen online Poomsae events. We need to build on this and continue to embrace technology to find new ways to connect with our stakeholders.”
“Today’s historic video conference was therefore a chance for World Taekwondo to reset and show our stakeholders, and also show the world, how taekwondo is once again leading the way.”
The meeting had been scheduled to take place at the Olympic House in Lausanne.
IOC President Thomas Bach sent a video message to the Council:
“While we are all living with uncertainty about the future, it is clear that this situation is having profound implications for everyone in the Olympic community and in the entire world of sport. The most visible impact was the historic decision to postpone the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 to next year. In this respect, I would like to thank the entire taekwondo family under the great and able leadership of President Choue for all your support for this difficult but necessary decision.”
“We will need all our solidarity, creativity, determination and flexibility to get ready for the post-corona world. For that, we will all need to make sacrifices and compromises, this Extraordinary Council meeting is therefore a timely opportunity for you to set the course for the future of World Taekwondo to get ready for the day after this crisis is over. Thanks to your governance reforms, your impressive track-record of modernising your sport and your important humanitarian work, World Taekwondo can build on a strong foundation for this future.”
