July 2011 - IL SHIM

2011 ITF Hunter Valley Championships

Tournaments

IL Shim International Taekwon-Do

ITF Hunter Valley Championships

Saturday 3^rd September 2011

Venue: Muswellbrook Sports Centre, Rutherford Rd, Muswellbrook. More info here

Enquiries:

Host & Tournament Director: Mr. Frans Christensen

Email: Tournaments@itfaustralia.com.au Mobile: 0400 318 398

Application form online: http://www.itfaustralia.com.au/events/online-application-forms/itf-hunter-valley-championship.html

Entries Close: Friday 19^th August, 2011

Please Note: There will be strictly no extension to this cut-off date.

There will be strictly no extension to this cut off date

Dear Instructors and Students,

We have the pleasure of inviting you to participate in the 2011 IL Shim “ITF Hunter Valley Championships” that is to be held on Saturday 3^rd September 2011. We hope you all can make it!

It is necessary that all students comply with the ITF Tournament rules and regulations.

• All sparring competitors must use the appropriate protective sparring equipment approved only by ITF standards. Acceptance is purely under the discretion of the referee.
• All sparring competitors must weigh in correctly, and comply with their own weight category/division.

Non-compliance will lead to automatic disqualification.

Registration and weigh in begins at 08:00am. Tournament to commence 09::00am

All Tournament Registrations will be done via the online application form only.

You will find a copy of the official Application Form available at www.itfaustralia.com.au .

Please ensure that this form is filled in completely and accurately. Please only submit the official individual entry form and no other modified lists or documents. Please check all details carefully, as we cannot refund for persons disqualified due to incorrect information, and no adjustments can be made to the draw due to incorrect information on the behalf of the entrant. There will be no refunds for cancellations within 1 month prior to the event.

All tournament registration forms must be submitted with full payment by the deadline on (Friday 19^th August 2011). No forms can be accepted without full and appropriate payment.

We also ask that black belts experienced in corner judging, volunteer to assist if available. The Competition will be run according to ITF rules wherever possible however some small modifications may be implemented to facilitate the efficient running of the event. These will be clearly outlined at the start of the event. Please indicate on the entry form if you are able to assist as a corner judge, or via email if you are not competing.

ITF Australia / IL Shim International Taekwon-Do Federation pride ourselves on successful, safe and fair tournaments, where everyone has a lot of fun! So, we ask that due care is taken by all, to ensure that all competitors, coaches and spectators act respectfully toward one another and to all of the officials, whom are volunteering their valuable time.

There will be some snack food and drinks available at the venue, and there are a number of other food options “off-site” within close proximity. It is important that we mention also, to keep your area tidy at all times. Finally, as always, please feel free to invite your family and friends to cheer you on.

We look forward to hearing from you soon, and we look forward to a successful event.

Taekwon

Mr Frans Christensen V Dan

Aberdeen IL Shim Taekwon-Do Instructor

Tournament Director

Mob: 040031898

TOURNAMENT RULES AVAILABLE AT http://www.itfaustralia.com.au/events/upcoming-events/tournament-rules.html

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT MUSWELLBROOK

ACCOMODATION

For those seeking accommodation, we would suggest the following Motels,

a) Within close proximity to the venue:

– The Hermitage Motel, New England Hwy Muswellbrook. Ph: (02) 65431188

Mention that you are booking for the TAEKWON-DO TOURNAMENT for a discounted rate.

– The John Hunter Motel, New England Hwy Muswellbrook. Ph: (02) 65434962

Mention that you are booking for the TAEKWON-DO TOURNAMENT for a discounted rate.

– Baybrook Motor Inn & Apartments, New England Hwy Muswellbrook. Ph: 02 65434888

b) Within close proximity to central Muswellbrook (5 min from venue)

– Centabrook Motor Inn, 105 Bridge Street Muswellbrook. Ph: (02) 65433444

– Comfort Inn Noah’s in the Valley, 91 Bridge Street Muswellbrook. Ph: (02) 65432833

ABOUT MUSWELLBROOK: (extracts from Wikipedia and Muswellbrook Shire Council websites)

Muswellbrook, a corruption of ‘Muscle Brook’, is a town and Local Government Area in New South Wales.

The town is located in the Upper Hunter Valley region, about 243 kilometres north of Sydney and 130km north-west of Newcastle. The first European to discover the area was Chief Constable John Howe in 1819. It was declared a township in 1833. At the 2006 census, Muswellbrook had a population of 10,707. The current population of the district, including Denman, is about 15,200.

The area is predominantly known for power generation, coal mining, wineries and horse breeding.

The Shire of Muswellbrook covers an area of 3401.55 km². Lake Liddell delineates the Muswellbrook Shire boundaries to the east, Wollemi National Park to the west, Aberdeen to the north and Coricudgy State Forest to the south.

Muswellbrook is located at latitude 32°15´ south longitude 150°53´ east with an elevation of 144.2 metres above sea level.

GETTING THERE:

Flying: The Closest regional airport (Domestic only) is Newcastle Airport. From there Muswellbrook is approx 1.45hrs drive along the New England Hwy (Hwy 15).

Driving see below:

FROM NEWCASTLE (approx 1.45hrs Drive)

Head North to Hexham, Maitland onto the New England Highway. Follow the New England Highway for approx 120kms to Muswellbrook.

FROM SYDNEY (approx 3hrs Drive)

Take the F3 Freeway and head north towards Newcastle. Follow the F3 to its termination and go straight ahead at the roundabout. At Beresfield turn left for Maitland onto the New England Highway. Follow the New England Highway for approx 120kms to Muswellbrook.

FROM BRISBANE (approx 9hrs Drive)

There are two choices from Brisbane. Travel the coast via the Pacific Highway, or through the New England Region via the New England Highway.

Pacific Hwy Route – head south towards Sydney. At the Hexham interchange just north of Newcastle, turn right and head towards Maitland onto the New England Highway. Follow the New England Highway for approximately 120kms to Muswellbrook.

New England Hwy Route – From Brisbane head West towards Ipswich, then via the Cunningham Hwy to Warwick. At Warwick, follow the New England Hwy south to Muswellbrook.

31 July, 2011/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

2012 Bundaberg Cup

Events

IL Shim International Taekwon-Do

Bundaberg Cup

Saturday 17^th November 2012

Venue: Bundaberg Basketball Staduim, Flint Street, Bundaberg, 4670.

Enquiries: Host: Mr.Michael McGaw

Email: Tournaments@itfaustralia.com.au Mobile: 0407 145 574

Application form online:

http://wired.ivvy.com/event/QL5BRC/

Entries Close: Sunday 4^th November, 2012

There will be strictly no extension to this cut off date

Dear Instructors and Students,

We have the pleasure of inviting you to participate in the 2012 IL SHIM Taekwon-Do ITF Bundaberg Challenge that is to be held on Saturday 17^th November 2012. We hope you all can make it!

It is necessary that all students comply with the ITF Tournament rules and regulations. You will find a copy of the Tournament Rules and the official Application Form available on line at www.itfaustralia.com.au .

All sparring competitors must use the appropriate protective sparring equipment approved only by ITF standards. Acceptance is purely under the discretion of the referee.
All sparring competitorsmust weigh in correctly, and comply with their own weight category/division. Divisions will be at the discretion of the tournament host and be determined predominately by the entries received.

Registration and weigh in begins at 8:00 am. Tournament to commence 9:00am

Please ensure that the application form is filled in completely and accurately. Please only submit the official individual entry form and no other modified list or documents. Please check all details carefully, as we cannot refund for persons disqualified due to incorrect information, and no adjustments can be made to the draw due to incorrect information on the behalf of the entrant. Any refunds are at the discretion of the organizer.

All tournament registration forms must be submitted with payment (or evidence of payment) by the deadline on 4^th November 2012. No entries will be accepted without full and appropriate payment.

We also ask that black belts experienced in corner judging, or refereeing, volunteer to assist where available. The Competition will be run according to ITF rules wherever possible however some small modifications may be implemented to facilitate the safe and efficient running of the event. These will be clearly outlined prior to the start of the event. Please indicate to the host if you are able to assist as a corner judge or referee.

We at ITF Australia / IL Shim International Taekwon-Do pride ourselves on successful, safe and fair tournaments, where everyone has a lot of fun! We aim to ensure that all proceedings are conducted in a manner which reflects the true spirit of our Art. So, we ask that due care is taken by all, to ensure that all competitors, coaches and spectators act respectfully toward one another and to all of the officials, displaying at all times the tenets of Taekwon-Do. We also ask for your co-operation in heeding any directions/announcements issued on the day by the officials and marshals.

Whilst there is no official food or drink facility available at the venue, we will have available for sale some light snacks and cold drinks. If you have any specific food requirements we advise you to either bring your own on the day, otherwise there are limited options in the nearby vicinity (approx 3 mins away by car), or at Knox City Shopping Centre (approx 5 mins away by car). It is important that we mention also to please be mindful of keeping your area tidy at all times.

For those seeking accommodation, we recommend the following within close vicinity of the venue:

The Chalet Motor Inn: http://www.chaletmotorinn.net/

Best Western: http://bundaberg.bestwestern.com.au/

The Burnett Riverside Motel: http://www.burnettmotel.com.au/

Finally, as always, please feel free to invite your family and friends to cheer you on!

We look forward to a successful event.

Yours in Taekwon-Do,

Michael McGaw

1st Dan

Tournament Host

IL SHIM TKD Bundaberg

31 July, 2011/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

Memories

Henry's Corner

Henry’s Corner July 2011 (2)

MEMORIES

Dear Friends

In one of my previous contributions, I commented on the interconnectivity of our lives’ events and their complex causal relationships. Our participation in Taekwon-Do brings us some interesting experiences and I thought I would share an episode from my past.

In the mid-seventies I had the opportunity to travel to Ethiopia in Africa. I was a teenager attending Sydney Boys High School and very dedicated to my training in Tae Kwon Do under Master Young Ku Yun at the Australian Tae Kwon Do Academy in Sydney. My father was posted to Ethiopia as the South Korean Ambassador after having served as Consul General in Sydney and my sister and I went to visit our parents in Addis Ababa (capital city of Ethiopia) during our summer holidays.

It was one of the more exotic places I would have the pleasure of visiting and I looked forward to seeing my parents and anticipated an adventurous time. The flight into Addis Ababa was itself a bit of an adventure. My sister and I were flying Ethiopian Airlines and the entire cabin was full of Chinese people in their Mao uniforms. I am guessing they were some sort of government delegation from communist China on an official visit to Ethiopia. They were all staring at us stony-faced and were probably wondering what these two offspring of capitalism were doing.

Addis Ababa is seven thousand feet above sea level and has a shortage of oxygen. No need to go anywhere else to do high altitude training! This is probably one of the reasons why Ethiopia has produced some world class marathon runners. Until I got acclimatised, I was developing headaches when I worked out and I noticed the locals had a habit of gasping for air when they spoke.

I could go on forever describing my experiences there, but since this is not a travel diary I am writing, I will exercise the self control Tae Kwon Do practitioners are supposed to have and desist.

My father informed me during my stay there that an American diplomat, the Second Secretary at the American Embassy, is a fifth degree black belt in Taekwon-Do and has invited me to attend his class which he conducts at the American International School. His name was Robert Walson and I later learnt that he was considered by General Choi Hong Hi to be one of the foremost authorities on American Taekwon-Do at the time. Mr. Walson, in fact, helped General Choi Hong Hi write the comprehensive book on Taekwon-Do which was first published in 1972 and there is a picture of him with General Choi Hong Hi in the beginning of the book.

I was a first degree black belt at the time and, when I got to his class, Mr Walson wanted me to help him conduct his class. I did this with pleasure and one of the things he wanted me to do was demonstrate various jumping kicks to his students since he was unable to do them due to an injury to his ankle. I missed the bag with just one of them, which was the jumping back kick. Mr Walson was kind enough to tell the class that this was the most difficult of all the kicks. A jumping back kick is one of Master Daher’s favourite kicks and I am sure, if he had done it, he would have kicked the bag off its chain.

Some of us were invited back to Mr. Walson’s house after the class and, as we were talking in his living room, the cries of hyenas in the bushes nearby reminded me of which part of the world I was in.

When I look back on this experience, I realise how Taekwon-Do had already gained so much popularity and reached the far corners of the world.

The task ahead is to protect the essence of Taekwon-Do and not allow any rogue elements to corrupt the spirit of the art. The moral culture of Tae Kwon Do has to be maintained and developed. There is a unifying force in Taekwon-Do because it contains values which transcend all races and nationalities but perhaps we can dwell on this further some other time.

Have you ever considered the emotional content of all the moves you make in a dojang? Have you ever wondered what drives that kick and punch? Have you ever pondered upon the significance of those physical actions? We also need to contemplate on these issues sometime.

May we bring about peace and harmony through the practice of our art.

25 July, 2011/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

Identity Crisis

Henry's Corner

Henry’s Corner July 2011(1)

IDENTITY CRISIS

Dear Friends

Whatever endeavour we are engaged in, our primary task is to lay the foundation by establishing the objective we are seeking to achieve. This objective defines our identity and provides a focal point for our efforts.

Whether as an individual or a social structure, possessing a clear identity provides us, internally, with the clarity of purpose and, externally, a well defined message about what we stand for. The psychosocial state of disorientation brought about by the lack of a clearly defined identity becomes apparent through the visible angst and incoherent expression of purpose by the individual or organization.

In general martial arts have been suffering from an identity crisis for a long time and Tae Kwon Do has not been immune to this state of confusion. This loss of clarity over what Tae Kwon Do actually signifies was not caused by a change in the original doctrine of Tae Kwon Do but because of two other reasons.

Firstly, the hijacking and bastardisation of the art by those who wish to profit from it by making pretences of purity but using the art as a vehicle for their selfish purposes.

Secondly, Tae Kwon Do has been allowed to stagnate by not keeping it in step with the changes in the world and thus maintaining its relevance. The spirit of the art does not have to be compromised for it to adapt to the real world.

In this hyper-materialistic world we live in, the desire to attain wealth far beyond what we require to fulfil our essential needs becomes the impetus for so much of human activity. Financial prosperity as a by-product of the proper instruction of Tae Kwon Do is a legitimate consequence but for too many instructors Tae Kwon Do is a business first and an art second.

Boxing has two main objectives, firstly, to knock out your opponent and secondly, to make money in the process. At least there is no pretence here. Whether you agree with the concept of pugilism as a sport or not, at least its proponents and practitioners do not attempt to deceive the public by pretending to aspire to higher ideals. Where is the integrity in a Tae Kwon Do instructor who forgets that the tenets of the art are its core values and simply pays lip service to them while focusing on being financially successful. The sad fact is that most of them are not even effective at making money and the irony is that living by the tenets of Tae Kwon Do would actually bring greater riches both spiritual and material.

Beginning with the introduction of Tae Kwon Do as an Olympic event, the prevalence of tournaments may have contributed to the popularization of the art but there is a real risk that these events will also trivialize the art if the “spectacle” is not supported by a clear demonstration of its tenets

Change is a certainty and the world is a different place now to what it was at the inception of Tae Kwon Do. The doctrine and the timeless tenets of Tae Kwon Do may remain unchanged but the delivery of its message has to be adapted to the changing environment we live in.

In an age of world-wide turmoil, conflict, insecurity, anxiety and breaking down of traditional institutions, what is the role Tae Kwon Do can play to deliver the peace and harmony which this art is supposed to help achieve? By demonstrating the inner peace we achieve through the practice of this art and by sharing our core values through proper instruction we can show others how through our art we can achieve stability and transcend the chaos that surrounds us.

Do we know what we are and do we know where we are going?

11 July, 2011/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton

Coomera’s First Class

Coomera

Last night (4/7/11) saw the first lesson held at the IL Shim’s newest club. Coomera State School’s new hall, across the road from Dreamworld on the Northern Gold Coast, is the location of IL Shim Coomera. The school hall has great facilities and a soft court type floor ideal for training on to prevent too much jarring on the joints.

With my 3 children and 5 new/prospective students in attendance, we were joined by Mr John Abdallah 3rd dan, and Mr Michal Young, 1st dan from the Gold Coast club to get the first lesson underway.

I would like to thank Mr Abdallah and Mr Young for their support on the night, as well as Jake Kennedy and Elise Brittingham from the Gold Coast club for their attendance at training.

Looking forward to recruiting more students as we grow the club and get more Men, Women, and Children involved in Taekwon-Do in the Northern Gold Coast.

Taekwon

Shawn Sutton

1st Dan

5 July, 2011/0 Comments/by Shawn Sutton