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Why compete?
Tournaments offer Taekwondo students a chance to perform in a new environment, to meet and make friends with students from other ATA schools, to see advanced black belt competition, and even to win trophies.

Who can participate?
Students of all ages and ranks are welcome to participate in all ATA tournaments.

Will I have to spar people much better than me?
Students at ATA tournaments are divided by rank, gender and height to ensure that all participants have a chance to compete with people with similar experience and skills.

Divisions are small and the competition is friendly, and the tournament hosts and judges strive to ensure that all participants enjoy themselves. Judges are specially-trained to conduct their divisions efficiently and to enforce all tournament rules so that the competition is fair and no one is injured.

What does it involve?
White through yellow belts can compete in two categories: form and one-step sparring. Camouflage belts and above compete in form and point sparring.

The National and World Championship tournaments, and many regional tournaments, also offer weapons competition for black belts. Events include single or double ssahng jeol bong (nunchaku), single or double bahng mahng ee (short stick), jahng bong (long staff), jee pahng ee (cane) and three-sectional staff. In addition, some tournaments offer board breaking competition.

As of April 2001, many tournaments offer colored belt weapons competition.

What types of tournaments are there?
The ATA sanctions three levels of tournaments (view the ATA tournament rules):

The annual World Championship tournament, which the ATA hosts in Little Rock, Arkansas, every June is the world's largest martial arts tournament. The tournament regularly draws over 3,000 competitors and as many as 10,000 spectators. Competition lasts three days, and the highlights of the tournament are the international testing (at which black belts seek higher ranks before a panel of senior ranks and masters) and the Tournament of Champions (at which the top-ranked black belts compete to determine the year's World Champion in various divisions).

There are two National tournaments each year, one in the fall in Florida and the other in the spring in Nevada. ATA masters are present at both National tournaments. There also is a international tournament in South America hosted by the Songahm Taekwondo Federation (STF), which is the ATA's South American branch.

There are dozens of Regional tournaments each year throughout the United States. In the northern California region, there are usually three or four Regional tournaments annually.

The ATA also hosts occasional State tournaments. These are smaller than the regional tournaments and provide beginning students with a more intimate setting for their first tournament experience.

For information on upcoming tournaments, see the Calendar.

             
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