Taekwondo has 188 member nations, making it a sport befitting the Olympic spirit.
Former taekwondo Olympic gold medalist Moon Dae-sung told this to International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge at a meeting of the Athletes�Commission in Lausanne, Switzerland, held Dec. 8-10.
Moon is the first Asian to be named to the commission, and is lobbying to have taekwondo made a permanent Olympic sport.
In a news conference at Seoul뭩 Olympic Parktel yesterday, Moon announced his plan to globalize taekwondo. "I just began my first step as an IOC AthletesCommission member. I strive to learn more. I want to help Korean sports to be loved by the world,"he said.
Moon won the Olympic gold in taekwondo뭩 heavyweight division in the 2004 Athens Games by knocking out Greece`s Alexandros Nikolaidis with a jump spinning hook kick.
The Korean plans to hold an international forum on taekwondo in August, and will visit underdeveloped nations once or twice a month to spread the martial art and lend a helping hand to them.
"The World Taekwondo Federation has changed its grading system and reduced the scale of the ring,"he said. "I think these changes are good. I will talk to officials from the World Taekwondo Federation, Korea Taekwondo Association and the Kukkiwon (federation headquarters) soon to develop taekwondo into a more dynamic sport."
Moon said he will improve Korean sports diplomacy, nurture talented athletes, and boost the popularity of the Youth Olympics over his eight-year term as commission member.
At an inspection conducted by the National Assembly in October, rumors flew that he had the support of a government ministry in his election to the Athletes Commission.
To this, Moon said, "I broke no rules that members of the IOC Athletes Commission must follow. I was elected to the commission because I talked with athletes 15 hours per day during the Olympic Games."
I Want Taekwondo as a Permanent Olympic Event
