Seminar in Finland 2018
The Tampere Taekwon-Do club organized the first ITF Radix seminar in Finland on February 24-25, 2018.
A new way of thinking about old techniques
The leaders of the seminar are Rober Boer, 6th Dan, from the Netherlands, and Roy Rolstad, 5th Dan, from Norway, who have researched and developed simple applications of familiar movements suitable for self-defense.
Over the course of two days, the basic concept of ITF Radix was reviewed and we had time to go through several different self-defense applications, from color belt movement sets starting from Chon-Ji to Toi-Gye movement set. The seminar gave new perspectives on well-known movement sequences and it may be that many participants of the seminar no longer see movement sequences in the same way as before the seminar.
During the weekend, the participants became familiar with, among other things, the use of the belt hand, Dangi Son, in self-defense, using defense techniques instead of blocking as an attack, and when practicing the technique, using full force, but clearly reducing the speed.
- Self-defense is a personal skill, stated Robert Boer several times during the seminar. What works for one person may not work for the training buddy standing next to you in the row, and vice versa. It would be good for every hobbyist to find their own best way to implement self-defense and hone their skills as well as possible.
The participants of the seminar seemed to be satisfied with the seminar and several aha experiences were experienced during the weekend. There will surely be a new seminar in the future, that's how much the concept of ITF Radix was tickled in the minds of the participants.
In the traditional way, the leaders were also used to familiarize themselves with the Finnish sauna and open-air swimming culture at the Kaupinoja sauna, where many other seminar leaders have also visited to familiarize themselves with this very Finnish way of spending a Saturday evening. It can be proven that both drivers went for an open swim in the 1.2-degree water and enjoyed the hot baths. Welcome to Finland again!
Text: Heli Karjalainen
Photos: Lasse Kuusisto
