태권도跆

International Taekwondo Federation

Spain

ITF

Spain was one of the first European countries to receive Taekwondo directly from General Choi Hong Hi himself, with the arrival of Master Yoo Hoon Cho in Madrid in 1968. After an interruption, Grand Master Mario Pons Botella reintroduced ITF Taekwon-Do in 1983-1984 with direct mandate from General Choi, building from Alicante a community that competes regularly in European and World ITF Championships. In 2022 the ITF was recognized as an associated discipline within the Royal Spanish Taekwondo Federation, and in 2027 Lanzarote will host the first ITF World Championship on Spanish soil.

SCROLL

1968

Master Yoo Hoon Cho arrives in Madrid — first ITF in Spain

1993

founding of FEST — unified ITF federation

2022

ITF recognized as Associated Discipline of the RFET by the CSD

2027

Lanzarote — first ITF World Championship in Spain

先

1968 – 1974

Pioneers

General Choi and the Kimicho Gym in Madrid

Spain, one of the first European countries to receive General Choi in person

In 1968 General Choi Hong Hi visited Madrid and introduced Taekwondo under the name 'Korean Karate'. He left as principal instructor Master Yoo Hoon Cho, who founded the Kimicho Gym in Madrid that same year — the first Taekwondo academy in Spain. In 1973, General Choi made a second visit; by then Master Lee Won Il was establishing his first schools in Barcelona.

In 1974 a Spanish delegation took part in a World Championship in Canada — Spanish Taekwondo's first international appearance. That same year, however, Spain shifted its affiliation to the newly created WTF, and the ITF was sidelined for almost a decade.

“Spain was one of the first Western European countries to receive General Choi in person — the Kimicho Gym in Madrid dates from 1968.”

先

先First, pioneer

創

1983 – 1993

Reintroduction

Mario Pons and the official ITF reintroduction

Personally appointed by General Choi to restore the ITF in Spain

In the early 1980s, the young Mario Pons Botella (Alcoy, 1962) initiated contacts with General Choi from Montreal to restore the ITF representation in Spain. On 5 June 1984 he received the official designation as ITF delegate and founded the Spanish Association of Traditional Taekwon-Do. In 1987 Juan Ferrando Savall was elected the first president, founded the Tae Benidorm Club, and in 1988 Spain made its debut at the ITF World Championship (Budapest).

In 1989 the I Spanish ITF Championship was held in Alicante. That same year Madrid hosted the European ITF Congress where Spaniard Luis Báguena Salvador was elected president of the European federation — only five years after the formal reintroduction, Spanish ITF already had a representative at the helm of the continental body.

“Five years after its formal reintroduction, Spanish ITF already had a representative at the head of the European federation.”

創

創Creation, founding

合

1993 – 2002

FEST

Founding of FEST — unified ITF federation

Three associations merge to create the first national ITF structure

On 20 October 1993, three Spanish ITF associations merged to create the Spanish Taekwon-Do Federation (FEST), registered with the Ministry of the Interior under number F-1592. Juan Ferrando Savall was elected its first president.

Throughout the 1990s Spain developed a solid base of ITF clubs, especially concentrated in the Valencian Community, Catalonia and Madrid. FEST took part in every European Championship and ITF World Championship of the decade. Mario Pons, from Alcoy, remained the leading technical figure and competed internationally 32 times as athlete, referee, coach and administrator.

“FEST, founded in 1993, was the first unified federative structure of the ITF in Spain and remains active over 30 years later.”

合

分

2002 – 2020

The Schism

The ITF schism and the legal seat in Spain

General Choi's death fragments the ITF — Spain, symbolic seat of one faction

General Choi's death on 15 June 2002 fragmented the ITF into three factions. In Spain, one of the splinter groups established its legal seat in the country although its main office operated from Poland — making Spain a territory with global ITF institutional presence. In 2002 the International Taekwon-Do Federation Spain (F.I.T.E.) under Carlos Martín Requejo was also registered.

FEST kept its affiliation with ITF-Vienna. In 2004 a Viennese court confirmed Chang Ung as the legitimate president of the ITF, consolidating FEST's position. This organisational duplicity, a reflection of the global schism, led to the coexistence of multiple ITF entities on Spanish soil.

“Spain was the only European country to be the legal seat of one of the three factions of the post-2002 ITF schism.”

分

分Division, separation

新

2020 – Hoy

Recognition

CSD recognition and international projection

ITF integrated within the RFET — a unique WT-ITF coexistence model in Europe

On 19 December 2020, the RFET Assembly voted to incorporate ITF Taekwon-Do as an Associated Discipline. On 14 March 2022 the Higher Sports Council approved the statutory changes — after more than 40 years of parallel existence, the ITF obtained institutional recognition from the Spanish State. The structure adopted was a National ITF Taekwon-Do Commission within the RFET, headed by Paco Ferrando (6th Dan, son of founder Juan Ferrando).

At the Sarajevo 2025 ITF European Championship, Spain conquered 9 medals (2 gold, 2 silver, 5 bronze). Paco Ferrando was elected Vice-President of the AETF (European ITF Taekwon-Do Federation) for 2025-2029. In 2027, Lanzarote will host the ITFU World Championship — the first ITF Worlds in Spain, with over 1,700 athletes expected from 40 countries.

“In 2027 Lanzarote will host the first ITF World Championship on Spanish soil — a milestone 59 years after the arrival of the first ITF master in Madrid.”

新

Featured figures