Grandmaster Hee Il Cho
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What's New at AIMAA
Orlando, Florida USA
July 14 - 18 2008
by Karim Belgacim, AIMAA Scotland
Excited AIMAA members piled into the Champions Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida after enduring long travels from around the world for the highly-awaited AIMAA Summer Camp 2008. Tiny hearts of children who had only seen pictures of Grandmaster Hee Il Cho raced as adrenaline pumped through all the participants arriving to the camp. The entire family was ready to start the action - what better way to spend the summer than with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and the AIMAA Masters!?
Grandmaster Cho, Master Ameris, Master Darcy, Master Byrne and Master Kirkwood along with long-time and loyal AIMAA Instructors taught classes throughout the week which made for an incredibly diverse training schedule with every Master concentrating on his own specialised subject.
The camp opened with Grandmaster Cho personally welcoming everyone to the camp, encouraging each student to take their pace and make the most out of the special opportunity to train together again as an AIMAA family.
Master Peter Byrne of Ireland and Master John Kirkwood of Scotland had the pleasure of kick-starting the week’s proceedings with the first two classes. Camp members were split into two groups throughout the week, allowing for more in-depth and extensive training with each Master/ Instructor who was teaching that day; before switching over for another equally challenging yet gratifying class. On the opening day, Master Kirkwood taught an extremely challenging class of dynamic kicking and sparring while Master Byrne taught an explosive one-step sparring class.
To find two Tae Kwon Do masters with more skill and precision in these disciplines would be very difficult. Master Kirkwood’s class flowed from one kick to another, each time showing the class two or three different ways to execute the kicks and sparring drills while demonstrating each technique to an exquisite standard. Master Kirkwood’s kicking, fitness, and flexibility are second to none. Kicking forwards, kicking backwards, spinning kicks, jumping kicks – a truly excellent class.
Master Byrne, from Ireland, is an incomparable practitioner and demonstrator of the AIMAA one-step sparring curriculum. This class went from numbers 21 thru 55. Every single 1-step technique was delivered with full power and precision. Master Byrne would demonstrate each technique numerous times while giving tips on how to simply modify each one-step to fit every practitioner’s body type and style. This was an exceptional class filled with various interesting and useful on one of the foundational parts of the AIMAA Curriculum.
Day two of the 2008 Summer Camp was the ‘MAIN EVENT’ – Grandmaster Hee II Cho’s seminar. After the first day of training, everyone was warmed up and raring to go. When ever you train with Grandmaster Cho, it is always important to savour the experience and sponge in as much information as possible. As they say, time fly’s when you’re having fun, and this seminar, like the hundred or thousands that have gone before, was a Tae Kwon Do dream.
Like all things in life that are awe-inspiring you really have to see it to believe it. If you were a spectator or a participant at Grandmaster Cho’s seminar and you were told he was in his thirties, forties or even fifties you would struggle to believe the flexibility, drive or precision on show. To consider that the AIMAA president is now nearly 70 years of age is truly inspiring. There were many different components of the martial arts taught at Summer Camp 2008 from self defence to knife fighting to ground grappling, but Grandmaster Cho’s seminar was pure Tae Kwon Do. One of the best martial arts in the world taught and performed by the best martial artist in the world.
After an excellent warm-up and stretching routine, Grandmaster Cho led all of the Masters and AIMAA members through two hours of Tae Kwon Do punching and kicking drills. Grandmaster moved everyone forwards and backwards; side to side, twisting and turning. It was an incredibly exciting and inspirational highlight of the camp.
The rest of the week’s proceedings were made up of many different classes taught by different international AIMAA Instructors and, of course, AIMAA Technical Director Master Philip Ameris and AIMAA European Director Master John Darcy.
The various international Instructors presented fresh perspectives on the AIMAA patterns and testing curricula. Master Ameris and Master Darcy moved into more specialised areas including knife fighting, self defence, and practical applications of Tae Kwon Do techniques.
Both Master Ameris and Master Darcy personify the true stature and depth of quality that the AIMAA possesses. Both Masters taught a number of classes throughout the week that introduced some absolutely unique training concepts, once again broadening everyone’s physical and mental boundaries in regards to their art.
Master Ameris’ ‘Introduction to Knife Fighting’ seminar was truly impressive and enlightening, teaching camp participants multiple, non-intimidating drills using the knife as a weapon. This was definitely a new skill for everyone to learn, but as Grandmaster Cho has taught us – never restrict your learning. Master Ameris also used the Summer Camp as an opportunity to review the new AIMAA curriculum which was introduced, for Black Belt gradings, at last year’s AIMAA Instructor’s Boot Camp in Hawaii.
Master Darcy’s classes at camp reviewed the AIMAA curriculum, but everyone would agree that the AIMAA European Director has a manner and enthusiasm which resonates throughout the class and a teaching style that makes even Tae Kwon Do basics fun, challenging, and new. A particular class of interest was the ‘Practical Application of Patterns’ class which Master Darcy taught near the end of the week. Here, the students were taken through the traditional techniques in the patterns and then shown how these could be altered or brought into a street confrontation. This was another outstanding class and was thoroughly enjoyed by all.
This year’s camp was not only a treat for long-time standing AIMAA members, but for the next generation of AIMAA children and for non-members joining the AIMAA family in training. With complete humility and a sincere joy of teaching that could not be hidden from his face, Grandmaster Cho graced the children with his booming presence as he left a roomful of them in jitters and giggles after a powerful and fun-filled class for the youth attending the camp. Children anxiously lined up for a glimpse and autograph from Grandmaster Cho who quickly quelled their nervousness with his generous warmth.
A non-AIMAA member who joined everyone in the week’s festivities left completely blown away and deeply satisfied for taking advantage of the opportunity to train with Grandmaster Cho and his organization. She commented about how a feeling of family swept over her as she interacted with the AIMAA members – a principle this organization strongly stands for and does best to uphold.
AIMAA Summer Camp 2008 was a tremendous event that once again ticked all the boxes. In the AIMAA, the emphasis is always on the training – Train today, Talk tomorrow!
No politics; no meetings for only high degree black belts, no egos, nothing but pure Tae Kwon Do and training. It is this sort of endeavour that builds the sort of relationships members from around the world have found and prospered in - working together towards the same goals and dreams.
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