Teachers and schools came first
Taekwon-Do already had students outside Korea before the ITF was founded. The demonstration tour to Vietnam and Taiwan in 1959 opened its international development. Teaching followed the performances: instructors held classes, prepared local assistants and helped establish schools.
In 1962, Choi became the Republic of Korea’s ambassador to the Federation of Malaya, whose territory is now part of Malaysia. Malaysia was formed on 16 September 1963, during his posting. Diplomatic contacts helped local organisations grow, while his work with Kim Bok Man and Woo Jae Lim helped develop the patterns. This period is explored further in Choi’s biography.
In 1965, his team made an international tour, and the English-language book “Taekwon-Do: The Korean Art of Self-Defence” provided new students with teaching material. People in different countries were now ready to represent the art. The next step was to bring them together in one federation.
Nine associations
The International Taekwon-Do Federation was founded in Seoul on 22 March 1966. Its founding associations represented Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, West Germany, the United States, Turkey, Italy and Egypt. Choi Hong Hi became president.
Nine associations established a foundation for lasting international cooperation. The federation connected national centres and provided shared representation and organisational support for teaching, gradings and competition.
Schools learn to work together
A shared programme helped instructors understand what colleagues in other countries were teaching. Chang Hon patterns, Korean commands, manuals and technical seminars connected distant schools. Masters continued refining the movements and passing those developments on to their students.
Local teachers recruited groups, explained unfamiliar terms, held gradings and prepared new instructors. Their daily work turned short international visits into lasting clubs. Choi kept in touch with their leaders and continued travelling to teach.
From a federation to world competition
National associations gradually established shared arrangements for grading, teaching and competition. Choi combined the presidency with his work as a technical teacher, while committees and collective leadership developed alongside him.
In 1972, after Choi was forced into exile, the ITF headquarters moved to Toronto. Montreal hosted the first ITF World Championships in 1974. Athletes from different schools met on a shared competition floor, with judges applying agreed standards.
The championships were the next step after years of demonstrations, seminars and association building. The federation continued its work outside Korea, supported by the masters developing its schools in their own countries.