75 black belts including 9 examiners packed the National Training Centre on 21 September 2008. They were there for different reasons – a few to share their knowledge, a number to learn the poomsae for their grading and the rest to upgrade their qualification from Level 1 to Level 2.
The course was conducted by two international poomsae referees. They were assisted by qualified Level 3 poomsae coaches.
The participants went through 5 poomsae from Koryo (1st dan pattern) to Sipjin (5th dan pattern). They learned the finer points of each poomsae by going through basic drills before performing the poomsae.
While it was a challenge for most participants to pick up five poomsae in one session, a few of them were able to focus on correcting their movements as they had prior knowledge of the poomsae.
Those who were going for Level 2 were required to take a test. Although they were given one week to practice for the test, 12 of them preferred to be tested at the end of the course. Of the 12 who took the test, 2 failed.
The two participants who did not make it were allowed to come back on Sunday 28 September 2008 at 2pm at the NTC for a retest. They would join the rest who required the extra week of practice.
The list of participants for the upgrading course is attached. The result of the upgrading test would be announced next week.