By Daniel Etchells

Chungwon Choue, President of the World Taekwondo Federation, believes Para-taekwondo would be unlike any other sport at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games ©WTF Chungwon Choue, President of the World Taekwondo Federation, has claimed his sport would add "something unique and very powerful" to Tokyo 2020 as the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) gets set to make its final decision on the sports programme on Saturday (January 31).

Taekwondo's application will be considered alongside that of seven other sports - canoe, cycling, football five-a-side, football seven-a-side, judo, sailing and wheelchair fencing - at the IPC Governing Board's meeting in Abu Dhabi, which is scheduled to take place from tomorrow until Sunday (February 1).

A maximum of 23 sports can be part of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games with the IPC Governing Board approving the first 16 on the recommendation of the IPC management team at a meeting in Berlin last October.

They were athletics, archery, badminton, boccia, equestrian, goalball, powerlifting, rowing, shooting, sitting volleyball, swimming, table tennis, triathlon, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby and wheelchair tennis.

Taekwondo and badminton were the two new sports eligible to apply for inclusion, along with the 22 sports that will feature at Rio 2016.

The eight sports that were not approved at October's meeting were asked to provide additional information to the IPC addressing issues identified in their applications.

This information has since been reviewed and, with further analysis having been provided to the IPC Governing Board ahead of this week's meeting, Choue is hoping for a positive outcome. 

Para-taekwondo has a lot of plus-points but whether they will prove to be enough to secure inclusion at the Tokyo 2020 remains to be seen ©WTFPara-taekwondo has a lot of plus-points but whether they will prove to be enough to secure inclusion at the Tokyo 2020 remains to be seen ©WTF



"If we had the honour of being included in the Paralympic programme, it would act as a catalyst for rapid expansion and provide a pathway into Para-sport for people who would not otherwise have an opportunity to engage with the Paralympic Movement," said Choue.

"We are committed to being an outstanding partner to the IPC.

"If selected, Para-taekwondo would be the only combat sport for arm-deficiency athletes on the Paralympic programme.

"It would be unlike any sport that Paralympic audiences have seen before and we strongly believe that it would add something unique and very powerful to the Paralympic Games."

As an IPC-recognised International Sports Federation, the WTF has worked closely with the IPC and the International Organisations of Sports for the Disabled (ISOD) to adopt international best practices and deliver the best possible sporting experience to athletes and fans.

Over the last two years, the WTF has updated the Para-taekwondo competition rules to try to make the sport more dynamic and more exciting, and also, they claim, introduced the most advanced sport technologies across all Para-taekwondo competitions in an attempt to ensure the safety of athletes and eliminate human error from judging.

Additionally, it has implemented new Para-taekwondo classification rules and regulations - based on sport-specific evidence-based research - with the aim of guaranteeing fair and equal competition, and allocated specific Para-taekwondo development funding to national federations to help increase global participation, particularly between youths and females.

"To see Para-taekwondo athletes compete at the Paralympic Games has been a dream of ours since 2006," added Choue.

"Over the last six years, since our first World Championships, we have worked tirelessly to develop Para-taekwondo and provide the most fair, accessible and exciting sport possible.

"With the help of the IPC, we have come a very long way but we know we can go even further.

"With 206 national federations worldwide, we have huge potential for global growth especially in emerging markets and non-traditional sports nations.

"Para-taekwondo is universally accessible and already widely practised in all five IPC regions."

Taekwondo missed out on the Rio 2016 Paralympic sports programme but is hoping to be included for Tokyo2020 ©WTFTaekwondo missed out on the Rio 2016 Paralympic sports programme but is hoping to be included for Tokyo2020 ©WTF




Meanwhile, the WTF has announced that the sixth edition of the World Para-Taekwondo Championships will be held this year in the Turkish city of Samsun on September 18.

With world rankings being implemented for all Para-taekwondo competitions in 2015, the Championships will be a G8 event, providing athletes the potential to earn up to 80 points.

Under the "One Taekwondo" philosophy, the Championships will also include Para-taekwondo poomsae competitions for intellectually disabled athletes and athletes with neurological impairments as part of the WTF's commitment to developing Para-sport.

The record-breaking participation level set at last year's event, which attracted 113 athletes from 37 countries, is expected to be broken.

Para-taekwondo's quadrennial programme has also been advanced to offer a clear pathway towards the World Championships.

This year sees the introduction of African and Asian Para-Taekwondo Championships for the first time giving athletes from all over the world the opportunity to compete in elite-level competitions.

This will also help the WTF to meet the growing demand for the sport following a dramatic rise in global participation in 2014 with the number of newly registered athletes exceeding predictions by nearly 50 per cent.

Although a maximum of 23 sports can be included in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic sports programme, the IPC has the option to reduce the number of sports if it feels it is necessary.

Taekwondo was among the five sports that were unsuccessful in their application for the Rio 2016 Paralympic sports programme, with canoe and triathlon being chosen instead.

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