Competition spans poomsae, self-defense, weapons and falling techniques
President Seo Seong-il calls event 'a milestone for preserving traditional skills'
A national-level hapkido championship aimed at preserving the traditional techniques of Hanminjok Hapkido and testing competitors' skills will be held in Changnyeong, South Gyeongsang Province.
The Korean Hanminjok Hapkido Martial Arts Association announced Wednesday that it will host the 2026 Hanminjok Hapkido President's Cup Poomsae, Self-Defense and Falling Techniques Championship on Dec. 19 at the Changnyeong-gun Public Gymnasium.
The event is designed to preserve hapkido's traditional techniques and promote them worldwide. The association operates more than 400 branch schools in 45 countries and runs hapkido education programs, seminars and competitions both domestically and abroad.
Competition categories include poomsae, self-defense, weapons techniques, falling techniques and team demonstrations. In the poomsae division, athletes perform sequences linking offensive and defensive movements with bare hands. Judges evaluate precision, stability and control of force across forms ranging from basic poomsae to the 108-technique form, the kihap form and the breaking form.
The self-defense division features techniques for subduing an attacker, including wrist grabs, clothing grabs, throws and knife defenses. Weapons techniques are divided into staff, sword, nunchaku and combined weapons. The falling techniques division showcases distance falls, height falls, basic falls and technical falls. Team demonstration events include a group routine for teams of 15 or more and a six-person poomsae performance.
An official ceremony at 11 a.m. on the day of the competition will feature domestic and international demonstration teams performing breaking techniques, aerial falls and traditional poomsae.
The association was founded by Grand Master Seo In-seon, who established the Korea Kuksool Won in 1961 and went on to found the World Kido Federation's world headquarters in 1985, dedicating decades to spreading hapkido internationally.
President Seo Seong-il, the grand master's eldest son, has continued that work by organizing hapkido training workshops and original-form preservation seminars at home and abroad.
"The original techniques of Hanminjok Hapkido are more than mere fighting skills — they are a cultural heritage that has been systematically developed over decades," Seo said. "I hope this championship becomes a milestone for properly preserving and passing down those traditional techniques."
The World Kido Federation and the Korea Kuksool Won are co-organizing the event.
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