Representatives from China, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam met with ITF leaders including newly re-elected President Paul Weiler, secretary general Tadeusz Łoboda, senior vice-president Clint Norman, vice-president Annick van Driessche, treasurer Leonardo Oros Duek and Board member Philip Lear alongside the World Championships in Tampere.

Developing the sport in Asia had been identified as a key target by German official Weiler in his re-election campaign on a closed ticket with Norman, van Driessche and Oros Duek, and outlined issues of securing Government recognition in countries where Federations associated with World Taekwondo are strong, economic issues in low-income countries and the need to increase and improve the ITF’s activities on the continent.

Each of the countries in attendance shared background on their history of taekwon-do and issues faced developing the sport.

Participants discussed plans to advance the creation of an Asian Federation, but stressed the need to work regionally within the continent due to the vast distances and cultural differences across west Asia, central Asia, south Asia, south-east Asia and east Asia.

It is hoped two of taekwon-do’s leading Asian nations in Malaysia and Uzbekistan could play a leading role in south-east and central Asia respectively.