Taekwondo players will be permitted to wear different coloured trousers for the first time at an Olympic Games ©Getty Images

Taekwondo players competing at this year's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro will be allowed to wear coloured trousers displaying national flags, it was officially confirmed today.

It  will mark the first time that kit other than plain white trousers will have been worn at an Olympic taekwondo competition.

The change was approved at an Extraordinary World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) Council meeting in Muju today chaired by the world governing body’s President, Chungwon Choue, after being first proposed in March.

Each country will be able to pick one colour for all their athletes to wear.

It comes as a further measure to modernise the sport as taekwondo seeks to build on the momentum of London 2012 and to consolidate its place on the Olympic programme.

It is hoped it will also make it easier for fans watching either in the stadium or on television to identify athletes.

Updates on preparations for the Olympic competition were given by Rio 2016 taekwondo sport manager Mark Kauffmann, who provided an overview of both the training and competition venue.

Action is set to take place in Carioca Arena 3 in the main Olympic Park in Barra de Tijuca, although the nearby Arena 1 was used for a test event earlier this year.

"The WTF is aiming to match the vibrancy and energy synonymous with the Brazilian host city,” said Choue during the meeting.

“We are confident that the taekwondo competition in Rio will deliver more excitement, more action and more drama than ever before."

Chungwon Choue and other members of the ruling Council pose following the meeting ©WTF
Chungwon Choue and other members of the ruling Council pose following the meeting ©WTF

An update was also given on the venue and schedule for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where taekwondo is due to make its debut on the Paralympic programme. 

A Rio 2016 post-event briefing is due to take place in the Brazilian city on August 19, with the next Council meeting scheduled for during the World Junior Championships in Burnaby in Canada on November 16 until 20.

Council members also attended a separate discussion event with coaches and referees who had gathered in Muju for a special workshop and scenario training on taekwondo’s latest rulesets and equipment.

The Taekwondowon facility at Muju, where the 2017 World Championships is scheduled to take place, will act as a “control tower” to oversee the activities of the six regional centers so far established worldwide, it was decided.

These other six are in China, Iran, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Germany and the Great Britain.

A museum showcasing the history of the WTF will also be established in Taekwondowon.