Pro Hapkido Competitions

[Maxx]

I came across this video clip on youtube. It's called Pro-Hapkido. The competitions look similar to the Pankration tournaments with a few minor differences in the rules.

YouTube - Pro-Hapkido Championships '05

I found it interesting in that competitions like this tend to force arts such as hapkido to evolve and integrate techniques into their arsenals which either weren't there before or weren't focused on.

They have a web site at Pro-Hapkido | Strike, Takedown & Submit.

[Tom Yum]

As I remember, Hapkido (and other non-TKD Korean arts) teach grappling and have done so long before UFC/MMA. I started out in the Korean arts a good five years before UFC became a public event (it was only covered in Black Belt Mag and that was it).

As you advanced in rank, you learned more infighting and then grappling skills. You had to earn those next skills sets.

The difference between grappling I learned then and the type that every school now teaches?

Grappling was taught primarily to finish an opponent on the ground - the art wasn't focused on keeping the fight on the ground like BJJ or wrestling. For instance the chicken-wing and arm-bars were moves already in Hapkido's stand up arsenal, merely taught as applied to the ground later. Hapkido's takedowns and ground maneuvers are very close to judo and aikido.

Because of this, hapkido stylists only new enough grappling finish them if they happened to both end up on the ground, not compete and dominate on the enemy on the ground - like the BJJ system or like freestyle wrestling.

[Maxx]

Technically speaking, even Taekwon-do possesses, or at least did possess a basic arsenal of grappling techniques. Certainly not as elaborate or extensive as those found in arts such as hapkido or hwarangdo, but it was there. A great deal of rolling, tumbling, joint locks and submission-like techniques were taught to students in various classes that I attended in the late 70's and early 80's. A lot of the older books on TKD also display a collection of grappling techniques. Sadly with the popularity of Olympic TKD this element of the training seems to have suffered greatly and you rarely find these elements taught anymore.

[Tant01]

Looks A LOT like Judo to me....

[Tom Yum]

Technically speaking, even Taekwon-do possesses, or at least did possess a basic arsenal of grappling techniques. Certainly not as elaborate or extensive as those found in arts such as hapkido or hwarangdo, but it was there. A great deal of rolling, tumbling, joint locks and submission-like techniques were taught to students in various classes that I attended in the late 70's and early 80's. A lot of the older books on TKD also display a collection of grappling techniques. Sadly with the popularity of Olympic TKD this element of the training seems to have suffered greatly and you rarely find these elements taught anymore.

Maxx, whatever happened to taekyon?

The art contained kick catches, sweeps etc. making it way different than modern TKD.

[Maxx]

Maxx, whatever happened to taekyon?

The art contained kick catches, sweeps etc. making it way different than modern TKD.

From what I understand, it's still practiced in South Korea. I really don't know a lot about it and there's a great deal of skepticism that modern Taekwondo was in any way influenced by Taekyon. Could be something to that too. From clips I've seen, it looks nothing like Modern TKD as practiced by any of the large international organizations.

It'd be interesting to look into it more if the art was more widely practiced.