Kyongwon Ahn

Kyongwon Ahn, 9th "dan" (Kukkiwon), is a Korean taekwondo master who founded the United Taekwondo Association (UTA) in the United States.

Ahn was born in 1937 in Seoul, Korea, and began training in the martial arts began when he was 12 years old. He served an internship with his instructor, Chang Bok Lee, as the Master Instructor for the Korean and American armies from 1955–1967. In 1962, Ahn achieved his Juris Doctorate (Civil Law) from Kangwon University. In August 1967, he emigrated to the USA and began teaching tang soo do at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. He has also held teaching and advisory positions at the Miami University (in Ohio) and Xavier University. Ahn founded the United Taekwondo Association in 1971 in an effort to standardize taekwondo teaching methods.

In 1974, Ahn was a founding member of the Amateur Athletic Union's Taekwondo Committee. The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) awarded Ahn his Master Instructor certification in 1977. He received 9th "dan" ranking from Kukkiwon in 1990.Kukkiwon Certificate #5000019.] Through the 1980s, Ahn worked within the United States Taekwondo Union (USTU). He served as a member of the Board of Directors for the United States Olympic Committee and worked to bring taekwondo to the 1988 and 1992 Summer Olympic Games. In 2000, Ahn was one of the founders of the United States Taekwondo Won (USTW). From 2003–2005, he served on the WTF's Legislative Committee. In 2005, the Republic of Korea awarded Ahn the National Sport Merit Award in recognition of his work in promoting taekwondo and helping it to become a full medal Olympic sport.

References

*Ahn, Kyongwon. Personal interview. 5 February 2005.
*Ahn, Kyongwon. Personal interviews. 30 July 2007–18 August 2007.
* [http://www.ahntkd.com Ahn Taekwondo Institiute]