__NOTOC__ Park Jong-soo (1941 – 27 November 2021) was a South Korean

master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

and one of the twelve

original masters of taekwondo The original masters of taekwondo is a group of twelve South Korean martial art Grandmaster (martial arts), masters assembled by the Korea Taekwondo Association (KTA) in the early 1960s to promote the newly established art of taekwondo.Choi, H. ...

of the Korea Taekwon-Do Association.Choi, H. H. (1972): ''Taekwon-Do: The Korean art of self-defence''. Mississauga: International Taekwon-Do Federation.Park, S. H. (1993): "About the author." In H. H. Choi: ''Taekwon-Do: The Korean art of self-defence'', 3rd ed. (Vol. 1, pp. 241–274). Mississauga: International Taekwon-Do Federation.A tribute to the original masters
(c. 2007). Retrieved on 13 June 2007; link has expired, as at 1 July 2011. He held the rank of 9th ''

dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa ** Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivo ...

''.Grand Master Jong-soo Park: Biography
Retrieved on 22 February 2009.Pioneers of Taekwon-Do: Grand Master Park Jong-soo
Retrieved on 13 January 2010. Following a career in the South Korean military, he emigrated to Canada in 1968.

Early life

Park was born in Chūseinan-dō,

Korea, Empire of Japan From 1910 to 1945, Korea was ruled by the Empire of Japan under the name Chōsen (), the Japanese reading of "Joseon". Japan first took Korea into its sphere of influence during the late 1800s. Both Korea (Joseon) and Japan had been under polic ...

in 1941. He trained in taekwondo under

Choi Hong-hi Choi Hong-hi (; 9 November 1918 – 15 June 2002) was a South Korean Army general, and martial artist who was an important figure in the history of the Korean martial art of Taekwondo, albeit controversial due to his introduction of taek ...

. In 1965, he was invited to be the coach of the German Taekwon-Do Association, and moved from South Korea to

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

. Park was ranked 5th ''dan'' that year.Taekwondo Homepage: Geschichte des Taekwondo
. Retrieved on 5 January 2010. The following year, he moved to the Netherlands and founded the Netherlands Taekwon-Do Association. Through the late 1960s and 1970s, Park was a key member of the taekwondo demonstration teams that accompanied Choi around the world.Cox, S. (c. 2004)

Retrieved on 3 February 2010.

Canada

In 1968, Park settled in Toronto, Canada. In 1973, he held the rank of 7th ''dan''.International Taekwon-Do Association Slovenia: ITF history
Retrieved on 3 February 2010. In 1974, Park and several other ITF masters demonstrated taekwondo in Toronto—then being promoted as "the new home of the ITF" by Choi.Anonymous (1974): "International Tae Kwon Do demo held in Canada." ''Black Belt'', 12(12):13–14. Park and Choi went their separate ways after Choi insisted on establishing relations with

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

during a politically sensitive period.Gillis, A. (2003)
Tiny master
''Toro'', June–July 2003:100–107. Retrieved on 31 January 2010. By 2002, however, they were reconciled, and Park was present at Choi's deathbed. In 2004, Park was President of the Canadian Taekwon-Do Association, and presented a seminar in Afghanistan.
(4 April 2004). Retrieved on 30 January 2010. In 2008, Park conducted a seminar in Beijing.
(15 September 2008). Retrieved on 30 January 2010. He headed taekwondo schools in Toronto.
Retrieved on 4 March 2010. Park is listed as a pioneer in Canada (1950s, 1960s, and 1970s) in

Choi Chang-keun __NOTOC__ Choi Chang-keun (; born 1941), widely known as C. K. Choi, is a South Korean–Canadian master of taekwondo,Choi, C. K. (2007)
Tae Kwon Do Pioneers
Retrieved on 15 March 2008.

Filmography

Schools and Instructors Grand Master Park Influenced

* 1965, Park traveled with General

Choi Hong Hi Choi Hong-hi (; 9 November 1918 – 15 June 2002) was a South Korean Army general, and martial artist who was an important figure in the history of the Korean martial art of Taekwondo, albeit controversial due to his introduction of tae ...

on a goodwill tour through Europe, Asia, and Africa promoting Tae Kwon Do * 1965, during the above-mentioned tour, Park became the coach of the German Tae Kwon Do Association * 1965, Georg F. Brückner invited Park to teach in his Berlin dojo *

Billy Blanks William Wayne Blanks (born September 1, 1955) is an American actor, martial artist, boxing champion and Fitness culture, fitness personality. He was a nationally ranked competitor in semi-contact and point karate during the 1980s, winning a bro ...

was a student of Grandmaster Park Jong Soo * In the early 1970s, Park oversaw several Tae Kwon Do schools. Two were in Western New York and were operated by

Robert Heisner The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

References

External links