Hidden Communities: Michigan Taekwondo
The team jacket is an easy way for us to spot each other on campus or at the various tournaments we travel to.
Taekwondo is a Korean martial art that was founded in 1945. Translated, taekwondo literally means "the way of the fist and foot". A combative martial art, athletes train their bodies and minds in both forms (a display of technique) and sparring (the fighting most people associate with martial arts). Students advance through the ranks as their skills develop, starting at white belt, and eventually reaching a black belt. It doesn't end with a black belt though. Black belt athletes continue to train from 1st degree black belt and upwards, the highest degree possible being a 10th.
The Michigan Taekwondo Club trains 5 times a week, and each practice has a different purpose. Some days are for forms (known as poomsae) and belt test techniques, some days are for sparring, and some days for conditioning.
We wear protective gear when we spar. Here, we help each other lace up the chest protectors (hogu). It's a hogu train!
In my sophomore year, I joined the University of Michigan Taekwondo Club, looking for a place to get a good workout and to fulfill my unrealized childhood dreams of learning a martial art. What I got was far more than that. I became integrated into a wonderful community of athletes, who despite training in a combat sport, using each other as practice targets sometimes, remains oddly close, for a bunch of people who spend lots of time kicking each other.
Although Taekwondo isn't exactly a team sport in the conventional sense, training involves a lot of teamwork. We have partners who hold kicking targets for us while we practice kicking drills or learn new techniques.
Here are just some of the rules regarding sparring in the World Taekwondo style (the style used in the Olympics):
1. You score via kicks to the hogu or the head.
2. You may score via a punch to the body, but not to the face.
3. Strikes below the belt level are not allowed.
4. A scoring kick may use any part of the foot, but nothing above the ankle.
Injuries do happen from time to time, but we minimize the risk by enforcing the use of protective gear, and discourage the use of excessive force.
Everyone has a slightly different routine to tying the knot. Some have a lot of fun with it. Some are subject to it.
Watch out!
Sparring is a lot of fun, but there's more to the martial art than just fighting, and not everyone chooses to spar often, nor do they have to. Another major component of Taekwondo is poomsae, or forms. In poomsae, athletes perform a set routine of blocks, kicks and strikes to showcase power and technique. It requires a lot of practice and precision, and athletes in this area spend lots of time developing flexibility, technical precision and performance ability. Poomsae is the more artistic, performative side of Taekwondo.
Sparring is very cardio intensive and results in lots of sweaty people and sweaty gear. So people have to clean up after sparring before putting gear away so as to keep things hygienic!
We don't just train together though! We organize plenty of social events to spend time together outside of practice, bonding and getting closer over an endless series of strange shenanigans.
Madalasa pies our team captain, Miguel, in the face. The occasion? We raised a ton of money during fundraising and this was the prize!
TKD goes ice skating together! No hogus but we still can form a train!
Behind the scenes: the officer board of Taekwondo having our weekly meetings to manage the running of the club. We coordinate practice schedules, logistics, social events, fundraising, and lots more!
It takes quite a bit of organization to keep the club running. We have practice 5 times a week, and send members to compete in at least 5 tournaments every year. It's a lot to manage and a lot of that is handled by the officer board. We discuss everything from club policy, to uniform and equipment logistics, travel budgets and tournament planning.
Tournaments are huge highlights in our calendar. We compete in a collegiate league that is made up universities largely along the East Coast. These tournaments are a great chance for us to pit our skills against competitors from other schools, to meet other collegiate taekwondo athletes, and to have a ton of fun! All the tournaments take place along the East Coast, so each tournament is a huge 3 day affair. We spend an entire day traveling there, the second day competing, and the third day driving back. We drive to Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, New Jersey and Vermont. Long drives when you start in Michigan!
Tournament day! The day is just getting started!
Warming up before heading into the ring
We aren't due to put on hogus yet, but I guess we can form a braid train.
Tournaments are a huge time commitment, especially in the life of a busy college student. However, most club members do find every bit of it worth it. From the crazy 8-13 hour drives, the crazy midnight hangouts in our hotels, to the intense cheering we do for each other during competitions, it's a great time for us to bond and see each other develop in ability. It pushes us individually as competitors, and reinforces our commitment to each other as a team.
Getting each other stretched out!
"Hey Mitch, are those glasses protective visors??"
"Um........"
"Don't worry, I gotchu."
Towards the end of the semester, most of us will take a belt test to prove ourselves technically capable enough of advancing to the next rank. The belts we go through are white, yellow, green, blue, red, red-black and black. The tests involve kicking and blocking techniques, poomsae, sparring, and for some, board breaks! It is always a heart-stopping endeavor to watch people line up to smash their foot through a thick wooden board.
Relaxing a little after a long semester of training, competing and belt testing.
At the end of the day, I always marvel at the fact that a bunch of very different people from all disciplines of the university, can come together, allow themselves to kick and be kicked and become a group of very close friends in the process. I don't think you'd be best friends with someone who kicks you in the face in a normal context. Maybe its being stuck together for 10 hour van rides. Maybe its training 5 times a week. Regardless the reason, this tight-knit community is one that goes through a lot together, and I feel privileged to be a part of it.