Estados Unidos
WT · Kukkiwon
Estados Unidos es la mayor potencia del Taekwondo WT en el continente americano y uno de los diez países con más medallas olímpicas en el deporte. Con atletas como Steven López (5 medallas mundiales, 2 oros olímpicos), la histórica familia López — hijos de inmigrantes salvadoreños — y una nueva generación encabezada por Anastasija Zolotic y Kristina Teachout, el TKD americano combina una historia de excelencia deportiva con profundas lecciones institucionales. La comunidad latina juega un papel clave: gran parte de los instructores y practicantes en EE.UU. son de origen hispano.
Pioneers
The pioneers — Jhoon Rhee and the first wave
The father of American Taekwondo arrives in Texas in 1956
Taekwondo arrived in the United States in the second half of the 1950s, in part thanks to American soldiers returning from the Korean War (1950–1953) with knowledge of Korean martial arts, and in part due to Korean masters who emigrated directly as instructors. The key name of the first wave is Jhoon Rhee (이준구, born in 1932): he arrived in San Marcos, Texas, in 1956 and is widely recognised as the father of American Taekwondo.
Jhoon Rhee founded academies in Washington D.C. and other cities, trained congressmen, senators and public figures, and introduced the concept of TKD as a complete combat sport. Other pioneers: S. Henry Cho in New York and Il Joon Moon in California. In 1974 the USTU (United States Taekwondo Union) was founded, the direct precursor of USAT — the national body affiliated with World Taekwondo today.
“Jhoon Rhee — arrived in the U.S. in 1956 and trained congressmen and senators in Washington D.C.”
· Jhoon Rhee Foundation
Golden Age
The López family — three medals at one Olympics
Children of Salvadoran immigrants in Texas, the best in the world
The López family of Sugar Land, Texas, represents a unique story in American Olympic sport. Steven López (born 9 November 1978, of Salvadoran parents) is the most successful TKD athlete in U.S. history: 2 Olympic golds (Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004), 1 bronze (Beijing 2008), and 4 golds at WT World Championships (1999, 2001, 2003, 2005). His siblings Diana (-57 kg, bronze Beijing 2008) and Mark (-68 kg, silver Beijing 2008) competed alongside him at the same Games.
At Beijing 2008, the siblings Steven, Diana and Mark López won a combined 3 Olympic medals — an unprecedented feat in American sporting history. The family embodies the dynamic of TKD in the U.S.: children of Latin American immigrants who become world's best in their sport.
“At Beijing 2008, three siblings won 3 medals in one family — unprecedented in American Olympic sport.”
Institutional Crisis
USA Taekwondo and the SafeSport scandal
The entire board resigned — total reform of the organisation
In 2017–2018, USA Taekwondo (USAT) was investigated by the U.S. Congress for having received complaints of inappropriate conduct by coaches and instructors towards athletes for years without reporting them to the U.S. Center for SafeSport — an entity created by Congress in 2017 to handle such cases in Olympic sport. President Steve McNally and CEO David Askinas resigned in 2018. USAT was sanctioned by the USOPC and temporarily suspended from federal funding.
In 2019, USAT began a reform process: a new board, new SafeSport protocols and new executive leadership. Steven López, the greatest medallist in American TKD history, was declared indefinitely ineligible by the Center for SafeSport in 2021 — SafeSport sanctions are administrative and do not amount to criminal convictions. Jean López, former national coach and Steven's brother, was also sanctioned. As of 2025, USAT operates with continuous compliance with SafeSport standards.
“The 2017–2018 SafeSport scandal forced the entire USAT leadership to resign.”
· U.S. Congress — USAT investigation
New Generation
Zolotic and Teachout — the U.S. produces champions at 18
Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024: gold and bronze, both at 18
Anastasija Zolotic (born on 25 January 2003 in Wesley Chapel, Florida, of Croatian parents) represented the U.S. at Tokyo 2020 aged just 18, winning gold in -57 kg — the first American woman to take Olympic TKD gold. A serious kneecap injury kept her out of the sport for over six months and prevented her from qualifying for Paris 2024.
At Paris 2024, Kristina Teachout (Palm Bay, Florida, also 18) took up the relay: she won bronze in -67 kg on 9 August 2024, defeating China's Jie Song in the bronze-medal bout. At the exact same age at which Zolotic won gold in Tokyo, Teachout heralded the arrival of the next American generation at the highest level. The U.S. is the world's third-ranked country by Olympic TKD medals, with around 10 accumulated between 2000 and 2024.
“Tokyo 2020: Zolotic gold at 18. Paris 2024: Teachout bronze at 18. The U.S. produces Olympic champions at 18.”
Identity
The Latino community — the heart of American TKD
Millions of Spanish speakers practise TKD in the U.S.
A very significant proportion of TKD practitioners, instructors and coaches in the U.S. is of Latino origin — mainly Mexican, Cuban, Salvadoran and Colombian. The Latino community has been fundamental in the massive expansion of TKD in cities such as Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, New York and Chicago. The López family itself — children of Salvadoran immigrants in Texas — embodies this dynamic.
Instructors of Mexican, Cuban and Colombian origin run academies with hundreds of students in California, Texas and Florida. Paige McPherson, an Olympic medallist in London 2012, was coached by Juan Miguel Moreno in Miami — a reflection of how Latin American talent feeds high-performance American TKD. Millions of Spanish speakers in the U.S. who practise TKD are one of the natural audiences for Spanish-language Taekwondo.
“The López family — children of Salvadoran immigrants — became the most successful family in American Olympic Taekwondo.”
Taekwondo en Estados Unidos
- ›Primer gran instructor de Taekwondo en EE.UU. (1956)
- ›Fundó academias en Washington D.C.
- ›Entrenó a congresistas y senadores americanos
- ›Reconocido universalmente como el Padre del Taekwondo americano
- ›🥇 Oro Olímpico Sydney 2000 — -80 kg
- ›🥇 Oro Olímpico Atenas 2004 — -80 kg
- ›🥉 Bronce Olímpico Beijing 2008
- ›4 oros + 1 plata en Campeonatos del Mundo WT (1999–2007)
- ›Inelegible indefinidamente por el U.S. Center for SafeSport (2021)
- ›🥇 Oro Olímpico Tokio 2020 — -57 kg (18 años)
- ›Primera mujer americana con oro olímpico en TKD
- ›Lesión de rótula impidió participación en París 2024
- ›🥉 Bronce Olímpico París 2024 — -67 kg (18 años)
- ›Derrotó a China en el combate de bronce
- ›Misma edad con que Zolotic ganó el oro en Tokio — nueva generación confirmada
Sigue explorando
La historia del Taekwondo continúa en cada dojang, en cada clase, en cada estudiante.