hankyoreh

By Kwon Tae-ho, Washington Correspondent

"What else besides taekwondo would make a non-Korean person bow toward the Korean national flag, Taegeukgi. Taekwondo is a great gift that Korea has given to the world," said George Vitale, the first American to receive a doctoral degree in Taekwondo Studies in North Korea.

He is 53 years old and holds a 8th-degree black belt.

Vitale received a doctorate from North Korea's National Scholarly Degree Award Committee headed by the Vice Prime Minister, Jeon Ha-chul, for his thesis on scientifically proving the positive effects of taekwondo on adolescents. He was awarded his degree in a ceremony at the Mansudae Assembly Hall broadcast throughout North Korea.

He registered for the doctorate program immediately after it was launched in 2007, and has since been devoted to his studies and writing his thesis.

He reported that he had received sharp interrogations from the final screening panel at the People’s Culture Palace.

Vitale began taekwondo in the early 1970s. He was a shy boy whose father was an alcoholic. He grew up in the slums of New York City. As though it were destiny, he was drawn to the taekwondo training center near his house. Taekwondo was a turning point in his life, provoking confidence and hope in the heart of this depressed boy. He worked as a police officer from 1981 to 2005 in New York City. During this time, he never stopped training.

He is affiliated with the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF), which is known for it’s original style. ITF integrates the forms of the traditional Korean martial art Taekkyeon and Subakdo. It was created by the General Choi Hong-hi.

That of the World Taekwondo Federation has been proclaimed as a sport in the Olympics. Taekwondo in North Korea is affiliated with ITF, which was the reason Vitale chose to study there.

At the 13th World Festival for Youths and Students in 1989, he visited Pyongyang with an American taekwondo team. He helped the North Korean taekwondo team visit America twice; in 2007 and this year.

"North Korea adopted taekwondo in 1980. This style of martial arts was typically used on the battlefields by South Korean troops in the 1950s,” Vitale said. “I think it was the first time in history that North Korea and South Korea had exchanged something." He explained that taekwondo in North Korea is close to the original form of taekwondo. It was the form of taekwondo that many of the great historic figures of Korea had learned and practiced.

"Taekwondo is peace. I hope that I, the first American to receive a doctorate in taekwondo from North Korea, can encourage cultural exchanges between North Korea and South Korea as well as between America and North Korea," he added.

(Translated by Kim Min-ji, Intern)

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