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History of ATA
In 1968, Korean General Hong Hi Choi
(the man responsible for originally standardizing Taekwondo in 1955)
met with then Master Haeng Ung Lee (now Eternal Grand Master), who
at the time was teaching Taekwondo-Japanese mixed martial arts to
his organization of followers. General Choi quickly taught Eternal
Grand Master Lee the first 16 Cheon-jee forms of Taekwondo in only 4
days and
three nights (this system of forms was the first set of forms
developed under the new Taekwondo of Korea).
From this first meeting almost half a century ago, the stage was set
for the founding of The American Taekwondo Association (ATA) in 1969
in Omaha, Nebraska by Eternal Grand Master Lee.
Eternal Grand Master Lee began his martial arts training in 1954 as
a teenager. He taught martial arts to Republic of Korea military
intelligence personnel from 1956 to 1959, opening his first
commercial school in Osan, Korea after leaving the military.
Eternal Grand Master then opened several "branches" to his
commercial school, including one at a U.S. Air Force base. This is
where Master Richard Reed began training with Eternal Grand Master,
and the two forged a friendship that would ultimately result in the
ATA.
When Reed returned to the United States in 1962, Eternal Grand
Master joined him on a "visitor" visa, and began teaching in Omaha.
Although he had to return to Korea in December, 1963 while awaiting
a "resident" status visa, he returned to the U.S. in 1965 and began
working toward a national Taekwondo organization that would be based
on good martial arts and sound business practices. As it grew from a
regional organization to one of national -- and ultimately
international -- scope, the ATA began to establish standards that
would ensure consistent instruction.
The ATA held "closed" tournaments -- you had to be a member to
compete. Instructors had to undergo a rigorous trainee period to
become a certified instructor, and the only way to receive
certification was to come to Little Rock for a week in August and
participate in a Trainee Instructor Camp, complete with physical and
written exams.
Every student uniform was white (no black, no blue, no stars &
stripes), and all lettering, piping and patches (initially just a
school patch and the ATA patch) on uniforms were to be consistent
across the organization. The ATA also shared marketing acumen with
its instructors, helping to build a stronger organization by
presenting a consistent, professional program and message to the
public.
From the beginning, Eternal Grand Master Lee was determined to
establish the most professional martial arts organization possible.
In 1973, he introduced the first instructor manual, which provided
information and procedures to standardize the operation of all ATA
schools. In 1976, he hosted the first Grand National tournament,
which was the predecessor for the Songahm Taekwondo World
Championships now held annually. A year later, he re-located the ATA
headquarters from Omaha, Nebraska to Little Rock, Arkansas, where he
soon had 200 black belts earning instructor certification each year.
In 1980, the ATA became the first martial arts organization to
introduce a centralized computer record keeping system. This
innovation enabled the ATA to maintain rank histories and other
important information about the thousands of ATA members. The same
year, the ATA began publishing a tabloid entitled "ATA News" which
has evolved into the international magazine The Way of Taekwondo,
now published quarterly to keep Songahm Taekwondo students informed
about upcoming events, appraised of new programs, and knowledgeable
about the physical and mental aspects of Songahm Taekwondo.
The history of the ATA was set on a new and unique course in 1983
when, at a Certified Instructor Camp in Little Rock, Eternal Grand
Master introduced the Songahm system of Taekwondo. The Songahm
system represented the culmination of years of study by Eternal
Grand Master Lee. The ATA had used the Chang Hun Taekwondo forms
since 1969 -- and the "Pinan" forms prior to that -- but he had
noticed something missing in the forms.
With the assistance of senior instructors including Robert Allemier,
Bill Clark, In Ho Lee and Jee Ho Lee, Eternal Grand Master developed
a unified teaching system in which, for the first time, White Belts
learned kicks in their Taekwondo forms and one-step sparring was
closely integrated with the forms to aid in student development by
establishing a more logical system for beginners. But even more than
that the entire system of Songahm forms worked together with balance
and harmony, reflecting the essence of the art.
In 1984, the Songahm Taekwondo Federation (STF) was founded by
Eternal Grand Master H.U. Lee and Master Cezar Ozuna to help spread
Songahm Taekwondo outside of the United States. In the fall of 1990,
the World Traditional Taekwondo Union (WTTU) was formed. While the
ATA encompasses member schools in the United States and Canada, the
STF includes member schools in South America and the WTTU covers the
remaining portion of the world.
With the passing of Eternal Grand Master H.U. Lee in October 2000,
our current leadership has taken up the torch of his inspirational
guidance and leadership and ensured the values the ATA were founded
upon remain our focus for today and into the future.
Grand Master Soon Ho Lee, after many trials and tests for the Grand
Master title, was elevated to be our leader in Taekwondo and guides
and focuses the Songahm Taekwondo style. Mrs. Sun C. Lee, wife of
the late Eternal Grand Master H.U. Lee and the ATA's Chairman of the
Board, continues the legacy of her husband by helping the youth of
Songahm Taekwondo through her philanthropic efforts and devotion.
Our leadership ensures that the ATA will continue to be one of the
most innovative, effective, and widespread organizations in martial
arts worldwide.
From its humble beginnings, today the ATA and its affiliated
organizations is beginning to register over 300,000 members
worldwide, including 53,000 black belts and 3,000 certified
instructors.
In many ways, this is still just the beginning. We know the ATA has
many wonderful surprises in store for Taekwondo in the United States
and across the world. We hope you will journey with us as the ATA,
and Songahm Taekwondo, continues to evolve and improve to help our
students and masters do the same.
Eternal Grand Master
Haeng Ung Lee
1936-2000
1936 Born
in Manchuria, China
1953
Began martial arts
1954
Received 1st Degree
1955
Began teaching Taekwondo
1956
Trained Korean military
1959
Opened Taekwondo school in Korea
1961
Met Master Richard Reed
1962
Arrived in U.S. and started teaching in Omaha, NE
1969
Founded ATA
1970
Received 7th Degree
1973
Became U.S. citizen
1975
Married Mrs. Sun C. Lee
1977
Relocated ATA Headquarters to Little Rock, AR
1978
Received 8th Degree
1978
Began hosting Grand Nationals Tournament
1980
Computerized ATA
1983
Created Songahm style
1983
Started Taekwondo World magazine
1983
Founded Songahm Taekwondo Federation (STF)
1990
Hosted first World Championships
1990
Inaugurated to 9th Degree and received title of Grand Master
1990
Founded World Traditional Taekwondo Union (WTTU)
1991
Established Master H.U. Lee Foundation
1992
ATA Day: March 22,
1992
Congressional Record
1992
Introduced The Way of Traditional Taekwondo book series
1993
Arkansas Business of the Year award
1994
Presented with ATA patch taken into space by space shuttle
1997
Created The Way of Traditional Taekwondo video series
1998
Established Black Belt Academy franchise program, created Songahm
Systems International
2000
Grand Opening of new Songahm Headquarters
2000
Passed away in Little Rock, AR; posthumously awarded title of
Eternal Grand Master
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