MOST USED TAEKWONDO KICKING TECHNIQUES

ABSTRACT In the recent years, taekwondo has become a global sport, gaining international reputation and prestige, establishing itself amongst the official sports of the Olympic Games. With the globalization of taekwondo worldwide, the increasingly demanding requirements for practicing athletes, coaches and judges are inevitable. The aim of our study is to determine the types of kicking techniques used in a taekwondo match, as well as their quantitative dimensions. Based on the videos from the Sofia Grand Prix 2019 in taekwondo, we established the number (3939) and the types (29) of kicks used in the matches of the -68 kg category for men. The preferred kicks of the competitors were identified, as well as the individual style of play of the winner of the category. The point efficiency of the surveyed athletes for all their matches was calculated (22.63%). The number of blows inflicted on average per match was determined (140.67), as well as the coefficient of intensity of inflicting kicks in each round (2.55). We used observation, video analysis, expert evaluation, and statistical processing. The results showed that the competitors mainly used their front leg to strike. This has a serious impact on the training methodology. The number of kicks executed in a match and respectively in a taekwondo championship can have significant impact on the training methodology, as well.