The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and not necessarily those of The New Agenda.

Never in my wildest imagination would I have thought in my younger years that I would be so involved in martial arts. Five and a half years ago my husband and I signed up our eldest son for Taekwondo classes through Grandmaster Sam J. Kim and his son Master Sung C. Kim here in western NY to help build up our son’s athletic ability as well as teach him the benefits of self-control and perseverance.  It was only a very short time into the program that we saw our son’s self-confidence and coordination blossom under the school’s instructors.

Our dojong offered a program for 3-year-olds so we signed up our young daughter and for at least a year she was one of the only little girls in their Tiny Tigers program.  Positive reinforcement was the key ingredient in this program and my husband and I couldn’t help ourselves but to be drawn into the program as a family.  Not long after we joined as a family, many other young girls and mothers joined as well.

Our dojong is a wonderful community and Grandmaster Kim and Master Kim boast over 150 active black belts within their program.  Within our specific school I am one of a dozen mothers who have earned the rank of 2^nd Dan (black belt) from Kukkiwon, the World Taekwondo Federation, and we train with many 3^rd Dan mothers as well.  Our dojong has never had such a high percentage of females in its long history here in New York.  Our daughter is now one of many 1^st Degree black belts under the age of 9 in the program and she has no intentions of discontinuing her training.

Diana Lopez

Our school also holds a historic record within Kukkiwon; in the summer of 2008 the youngest woman in the United States attained 4^th Degree Dan rank in Taekwondo.  Her name is Ali and she was 17 years old when she tested for her 4^th Dan.  Kukkiwon alerted Grandmaster Kim on the historic nature of Ali’s promotion and it was just another reason for all of the members of our Taekwondo community to swell with pride.

Having a larger percentage of women in our dojong doesn’t make the program more feminine or less masculine.  Taekwondo is a martial art that helps to cultivate a strong mind as well as a strong body.  Mental strength can be just as important as physical strength and the forms taught (referred to as Poomse) engage a person’s focus and mental stamina as well as cultivate agility and power throughout.  Olympic Taekwondo has historically centered around sparring and many of my non-TKD female friends cannot believe that I have the nerve to spar.  I consider sparring more of a logic game.

Grandmaster Myong Sok Namkung Mayes

The purpose of the game is to score points against your opponent by striking their chest or head.  As I have increased in my skill level I have learned that getting out of the way can be very valuable in not only preventing your opponent from scoring but also to prevent one from receiving an injury.  The most successful sparring competitors that I have seen in my lifetime do not leverage aggression, they leverage agility and opportunity.

I loved to watch Diana Lopez in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games win the bronze medal and compete alongside her two medal-ranked brothers, Mark and Steven.  Women like Ms. Lopez blaze a trail for other young women and engage girls in martial arts.

There is not a lot of information available at the percentage of women who rank at Dan levels of 5^th degree or higher.  I was able to find information regarding the highest ranked woman in Taekwondo and that is Grandmaster Myong Sok Namkung Mayes.  She has achieved the rank of 9^th Dan and as far as my internet research can tell is the only woman to attain that level.

Women have made progress in Taekwondo and if we stay on the growth track that we currently seem to be in, parity doesn’t seem so difficult to achieve.  We will keep making history here in the United States one young (or seasoned) woman at a time!