WUXI, China (Dec. 16, 2018) - The 2018 World Taekwondo Wuxi Forum was held today in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, as senior stakeholders across the global taekwondo movement gathered to discuss the future development of the sport.

 

The forum was held under the theme of: “Dream and Future, Building a Healthier Taekwondo Ecology” and focused particularly closely on the role the recently launched World Taekwondo Wuxi Center will play in developing the sport worldwide.

 

Chungwon Choue, President of World Taekwondo; Yongson Ri, President of the International Taekwondo Federation; Ahmed Fouly, WT Vice President; Inseon Kim, WT Council Member; Hoyong Hwang, ITF Senior Vice President; Guan Jianmin, President of the Chinese Taekwondo Association; and Liu Xia, Vice Mayor of the Wuxi Municipal People's Government, attended the event.

 

Following the official launch of the World Taekwondo Grand Slam Championship series last year, World Taekwondo has engaged further with the Wuxi Government and has carried out several other initiatives.

 

On November 21, 2018, in Fujairah, UAE, World Taekwondo officially selected Wuxi as the host city for the 2021 World Taekwondo Championships and the World Para Taekwondo Championships.

 

 

Liu Xia, the vice-Mayor of Wuxi Municipal People's Government, led the World Taekwondo Championships bidding team to Fujairah, UAE, and successfully brought the Championships back to Wuxi. Looking back on the relationship between Wuxi and taekwondo, Liu Xia mentioned in her speech that the arrival of the World Taekwondo Championships and the World Para Taekwondo Championships will inevitably make "Wuxi Hot" and "Taekwondo Hot" and continue to create great synergy between taekwondo and Wuxi. She added her thanks to the World Taekwondo family for their affirmation and trust in Wuxi and stated that Wuxi must live up to everyone's expectations and bring a new, meaningful and far-reaching World Taekwondo Championships to the world's taekwondo enthusiasts.

 

President Choue said that World Taekwondo will implement new projects to further enhance the standing of World Taekwondo in the Olympic Movement next year, he also expressed his expectation for the 2021 World Championships.

 

He said: "These are our most prestigious and important events, and we are very proud to have Wuxi as our host. “We also have the Taekwondo Humanitarian Foundation, which was founded in April 2016, to improve the wellbeing of refugees around the world. Through the THF, we can all learn about the importance of world peace and peace-building initiatives. Related to the social development benefits of taekwondo through the THF, one of the core peace-building projects that has gained worldwide recognition is the Azraq Taekwondo Academy in Jordan. Four times a week, the refugees, especially children from the refugee camp, gather in the Azraq Taekwondo Academy to train with international and local coaches. We thought that this could help the children to not think about their current situations and also improve their health.”

 

President Ri from ITF said “We wish the 2021 World Championships in Wuxi success and will work hard to develop taekwondo with World Taekwondo.”

 

In addition, Jeongkang Seo, Senior Director of the Membership and Development Department of World Taekwondo, and Jerry Ling, Director of the Strategic Planning Department of World Taekwondo, also introduced the future development plan of World Taekwondo to the guests present.

 

Bian Zhiliang, the founder of Taishan Sports Industry Group Co., Ltd.; Zhang Jianhui, Dean of the Physical Education of the University of Georgia; and Zhang Tao, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Wan Guo Sports, as well as other industry leaders with extensive experience and expertise held discussions with the guests in the forum and offered valuable advice in building a healthier Taekwondo Ecology.