CHUNCHEON, Korea (Aug 18, 2023) – The World Taekwondo Council convened today for an Extraordinary meeting that marked several significant milestones, including the awarding of the inaugural World Virtual Championships in 2024 to Singapore, and the approval of the Implementation Agreement with Chuncheon on the Relocation of the headquarters of World Taekwondo.
The Council meeting took place in a hybrid format on the opening day of the Gangwon-Chuncheon World Taekwondo Cultural Festival. In addition to the Council members, the meeting was attended by IOC Vice President Ser Miang Ng.
The creation of the World Taekwondo Virtual Championships, meanwhile, follows the success of the discipline at the first-ever Olympic Esports Week (OEW) in Singapore, where Virtual Taekwondo delivered the most memorable highlights of the event. Singapore will host the inaugural edition in 2024, with dates to be decided at a later stage.
World Taekwondo President Chungwon Choue said:
“Congratulations to Singapore on the awarding of the first-ever World Taekwondo Virtual Championships. Following the resounding success of the Olympic Esports Week in Singapore, I can think of no better host to stage this important new event and bring Virtual Taekwondo to the world. This is a key milestone for Taekwondo which reflects our commitment to innovation and engaging new audiences.”
During the meeting, the Council also approved the Implementation Agreement on the Relocation of the headquarters of World Taekwondo. The agreement follows an extensive bid and evaluation process, in which Chuncheon was selected based on its strong Taekwondo heritage and high scores across the evaluation criteria of sustainability, suitability, facility infrastructure and expected impact.
Chuncheon was also awarded the World Taekwondo Octagon Diamond Games, the World Taekwondo Demonstration Team Championships and the World Para Taekwondo Open Challenge from 2024 to 2026. The Host City Contract was signed by World Taekwondo President Chungwon Choue and Chuncheon Mayor Donghan Yook.
Meanwhile, the World Taekwondo Council welcomed Athletes Committee co-chairs Wu Jingyu and Cheick Cisse, who are now ex-officio members on the Council to ensure that the athlete voice is represented at the highest level within the federation.
Finally, the Council received reports on World Taekwondo's Safeguarding Initiative, which is a strategic follow up to the Hammamet Declaration on Safe Sport that it announced in 2018. The Safeguarding Initiative sees 13 representatives from World Taekwondo's administration and Continental Unions who will undertake the IOC Safeguarding Certification program.
The next World Taekwondo Council meeting will be held on 11 May 2024 in Muju, Korea.
