Birmingham, UK (August 8, 2022) – World Taekwondo made significant strides towards the recognition of Virtual Taekwondo as a medal sport in future Olympic and Paralympic Games, with its first public demonstration at the Commonwealth Esports Championships here from August 5th to 7th.
 
The 3-day demonstration included a mini 4-player tournament of professional athletes by using a double elimination qualification system and numerous tryouts by the public, including participants of the Commonwealth Esports Championships and families attending the Championships.
 
Virtual Taekwondo received rave reviews for bridging the experiences of sport and physical virtual sport, and for its inclusiveness as the elderly and young, and men and women, could pit their wits against each other in a safe and fun environment.
 
The public tryout was attended by representatives from the International Olympic Committee and the Paris 2024 and LA 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as organisers of the next Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Australia, in 2026. Various media outlets also attended the event.
 
“I wish to thank Refract Technologies for the successful public tryout and I am excited by the immense potential that our sport has to offer as a physical virtual sport,” said Dr. Chungwon Choue, president of World Taekwondo.
 
“Virtual Taekwondo is our commitment to the Olympic Agenda 2020+5. Our next target is the inclusion of Virtual Taekwondo in the Olympic Virtual Sports Festival in 2023.”

 

 “We are thrilled at the response to the first public Virtual Taekwondo demonstration in Birmingham, and want to thank World Taekwondo and British Taekwondo and GB Taekwondo for their invaluable support at the event,” said Michael Chng, CEO of Refract Technologies.
 
“As a partner of the Global Esports Federation, CEC 2022 was a great opportunity for us to gather feedback and intensively stress-test the system in a public setting, as we work towards powering future Virtual Taekwondo events and tournaments.”