For anyone not familiar with Taekwondo, it is not a style but a generic name used to describe at least 75 different versions/styles of Taekwondo.
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No Taekwondo is not a sport, but it does depend on where you learn it.
The martial art of Taekwondo is not a sport, it is a martial art. It has no rules and was designed for self defense.
Sport Taekwondo is a sport art. It is designed for competition under rules, not self defense.
It all depends on the school and how it teaches Taekwondo. It's a martial art, but some teach it as a sport.
Yes.
Yes, Taekwondo is a martial art and a sport. Taekwondo existed beforehand, in Korea as one of their martial arts.
Supporting fact: The International Olympic Committee deems it sport-worthy.
No it is not. Many people have this misconception (including this site) that it is but, it is not. Taekwondo is one of the three types of Martial Arts and Martial Arts are not sports but do keep you in the best shape both mentally and physically. I know this because I do Martial Arts in the form of karate.
Check it out, mate. Here's the short answer: Do you practice sport or self-defense? If you practice point sparring and have a "winner/loser" mentality, you practice a sport. If you practice self-defense where your instructor says: "you attack, you defend" and you strike, takedown, lock up, choke out, etc, then you practice an art.
Your friend knows what he knows because of what he's seen and experienced (or not). I know what I know because of what I've seen and experienced. From what I've both seen and experienced, Taekwondo is, at the heart of it all, a Martial Art.
Depends on what you train it for. If you train it for sport then that is what it is. If you train it old school for self defense (which is rare) then it is self defense. If you train it for health and fitness and don't care about the fighting part at all and just the exercise of it then it is a great exercise. If you train it for spiritual enlightenment and to build character then the discipline of the training can do that too. So you are both right. Your friend trains it for sport and you train it for the art aspect of it.
WTF and ATA Taekwondo are sports. They tend to focus on the high fancy kicks, ring fighting, and self-defense techniques are basic at best, in most - but not all - places.
ITF Taekwondo is different, many train hard, many are sports-only.
It is a sport to you if you train that way, to compete.
It is a martial art to you, if you practice only self-defense.
Most schools incorporate both of these elements.
It can also be recreational to you, if you train that way: neither competing, nor learning much self-defense.
According to Yahoo! Answers, all martial arts are sports...
I would say that most TKD in the US has become sport. Sure there is some that's still a martial art but few train that way.
Definitely a sport(and art).
If someone were to ask you what sports you play, would taekwondo be an acceptable answer? Is it a sport? I think of it to be more of an art than a sport, but my friend insists otherwise.
I think it's both an art and a sport.
WTF is more towards of a sport rather than a Martial Art. ITF and WTF are really different, but based on the same thing. In a real fight, you'd need really good fighting skills to use it.
ITF is more of a Martial Art rather than a sport. It focuses on more power instead of flashy techniques. It works better in a street fight.
Pugspaw gave a great and complete answer. There is nothing to add to what he stated.
Yes, but it wasn't always that way...
