Grand Master Kim Yong Ho 9th Dan

Grand Master Kim Yong Ho 9th Dan was the Chairman of the World Taekwondo Federation Technical Committee from 1998 to 2001 and is the founder of the World Mudo Academy.

Born 21/10/1942 in North Korea as it is today, Grand Master Kim Yong Ho's family moved to Seoul in the 1950's during the Korean war and he began his training in martial arts at the age of 11 in a gymnasium affiliated to Chung Do Kwan under Master Lee Seung Kook. Training for 2 to 3 hours daily, he obtained his 1st provisional Dan (chodan bo) in Tang Soo Do the following year. His rank was confirmed in 1956 in front of Grand Master Uhm Woon Kyu at Chung Do Kwan in Seoul and he became the 61st Black Belt (yoodanja) and a student of GM Uhm Woon Kyu.

As an instructor of Tang Soo Do, GM Kim studied at the Jyung Hee University from 1962 - 1966 and then serviced as an officer in the Korean Army. He became a 5th Dan in Taekwondo in 1967 (which was a very high rank at the time). It was in this period that Master Kim went to Vietnam initially as an advisor to a Vietnamese General. During his last 6 months in Vietnam, Master Kim trained the bodyguards and other people responsible for the safety of the Vietnamese Prime Minister.

Following this, Master Kim held a post as an instructor in Iran and subsequently in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. At the end of his tour in 1978, Master Kim settled in France and spread Taekwondo to neighbouring countries (England, Morocco, Portugal, Luxembourg, Greece etc.)

Not wanting to see art of Taekwondo become reduced to a sport, Master Kim opened his own schools (Kim Chung Do Kwan) and formed the World Taekwon-Mudo Academy in Darlington (England) which was inaugurated with an International tournament in October 1997. The following year, the first World championship of Taekwon Mudo were organised in Mexico (November 1998) with the participation of 17 delegations from 10 countries. The third big event was the Taekwon Mudo championship at the World Festival of Taekwondo at the University of Chung Cheong in Cheonju (July 2000).

The Lineage of the BTMA

The BTMA is part of the World Mudo Academy under Grand Master Kim Yong Ho whose master in turn is Grand Master Uhm Woon Kyu. Therefore, the lineage of our Academy goes directly back to the very first post-WWII school, Chung Do Kwan as follows: