Singapore Taekwondo Federation’s (STF) Para Taekwondo Committee, led by Mr. Michael Ho, visited Lighthouse School, hosted by Mr Kumaran (PE Department), on 14 February 2023. Located at Toa Payoh, the school is specially catered for the visually impaired and/or with hearing loss has been conducting Taekwondo lessons as part of their CCA program for several years.
Together with Mr. Alvin Tan, STF Technical Committee Chairman, the committee members got the opportunity to observe a typical taekwondo session in Lighthouse School, and it gave the Para Taekwondo subcommittee members a better understanding on the process of teaching students with special needs.
Taekwondo for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), also known as Para Taekwondo, provides an opportunity for athletes with disabilities to demonstrate their physical and mental abilities and compete at the highest level in the sport. It also helps to promote inclusivity and diversity in the sport and encourages more people with disabilities to participate in taekwondo. In preparation for future competitions for athletes with impairments, rules have also been adapted to focuses on the athletes’ safety based on fair and transparent rules, managing the Para Taekwondo competition with the maximum protection for the athletes.
While the fraternity is busy acquiring the necessary knowledge and skills over the past few years, STF is also making taekwondo more inclusive for anyone with special needs. This is also in echo to Singapore’s direction in “working towards a more inclusive society through sport” under the Disability Sports Master Plan (DSMP).
In line with World Taekwondo’s efforts to develop and promote taekwondo to athletes of all disabilities, we encourage all members to provide more details (i.e. their disability, number of students, etc.) of existing students that are already practicing Taekwondo in Singapore. You may write in to stkdf@mail.com, attention to STF Para Taekwondo Sub-Committee. We will keep in contact with you upon finalising the consolidated information and hope to be able to have our Para Taekwondo athletes competing in the future national competitions.