A total of 30 international referees from 30 countries and 50 coaches from 40 countries will participate in the event, which is due to run until Sunday (May 8) at the South Korean county’s dedicated taekwondo facility, the Taekwondowon.

It is designed as a tune-up for officials before Rio 2016 with a final referee training camp scheduled for either late June or early July in a location to be decided.

Today’s sessions were presided over by Chakir Chelbat, Philippe Bouedo and Paul Viscogliosi, the chairmen of the WTF’s Referee Committee, Games Committee and Medical Committee respectively.

They were also attended by WTF Technical and Development Committee chair Kook Hyun Jung.

The four-day camp features presentations, simulation training, video analyses, group discussions and question-and-answer sessions on topics such as rules, scoring, video replays, appeals, scoring and timing technologies, anti-doping and medical procedures.

Role-play workshops are also being held, putting coaches into the referees' position and vice versa.

"Everyone has to understand the jobs of their colleagues," said Bouedo.

"It is all about making connections between the different actors."

The camp is considered essential due to changes in taekwondo since the 2012 Olympics in London.

At Rio 2016, there will be electronic sensors in the head protectors, whereas at London 2012, the sensors were only in the torso protectors.

Another difference between the two Olympics will be the appearance of the uniforms with national coloured trousers allowed at Rio 2016 as opposed to the plain white ones worn at London 2012.

The shape of the competition mat has also been changed from square to octagonal in a bid to encourage livelier footwork.

"These changes have already been put in practice, mainly after the 2015 World Championships, so the coaches and athletes are familiar with them," said WTF sports director Jay Lee.

"This camp is about emphasizing these changes and allowing discussions between referees and coaches."

International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Iván Dibos of Peru praised the WTF for the equal gender ratio of referees at Rio 2016, where 15 males and 15 females will be officiating.

Aicha Garad Ali, also an IOC member and President of the National Olympic Committee of Djibouti, was impressed by the camp itself.

"I have never seen this before in any International Federation," she said.

Garad Ali echoed Dibos' thoughts regarding the WTF’s referee recruitment, noting that gender equality is part of the IOC’s Agenda 2020 - the strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement.