Paraguay
ITF
El Taekwon-Do ITF llegó a Paraguay principalmente a través del corredor argentino: Argentina fue históricamente el epicentro del ITF en Sudamérica, con presencia desde 1973. Instructores formados en Buenos Aires comenzaron a difundir el arte en Asunción durante los años 80 y 90. Paraguay participa en torneos panamericanos ITF aunque sin una organización nacional plenamente consolidada ni presencia verificada como Member Association en el directorio oficial de la ITF-Viena. La situación es comparable a la de varios países pequeños de la región donde el ITF opera a través de academias independientes o instructores afiliados a asociaciones de países vecinos.
Pioneers
The Argentine influence: the Río de la Plata corridor
Argentina as ITF epicenter of the Southern Cone — natural route to Paraguay
The ITF arrived in South America largely through Argentina. When General Choi Hong Hi visited Argentina in 1973, the country was already consolidating as the regional ITF hub. From Buenos Aires, the system expanded naturally across the border into Paraguay through the Encarnación–Posadas corridor — two cities separated only by the Paraná River, with intense daily cross-border movement. The Posadas (Argentina) dojangs served as an incubator for Paraguayan practitioners who trained there before establishing their own schools.
The III ITF World Championship held in Resistencia (Chaco, Argentina) in 1981 was a landmark event that boosted ITF visibility across the entire Southern Cone, including Paraguay. Argentine masters who had been directly trained in the original ITF methodology played a decisive role in transmitting the system to their Paraguayan counterparts — a cross-border pedagogical relationship that shaped the foundations of Paraguayan ITF.
Competition
Activity in ITF Pan American tournaments
Paraguay present in the continental ITF circuit
Paraguay has maintained a regular presence in the ITF Pan American tournament circuit, sending delegations to continental championships and open tournaments held primarily in Argentina, Brazil and Chile. Participation has been modest in terms of medals but consistent — a sign of the organisational continuity of the Paraguayan ITF community despite structural challenges.
The exchange with the Argentine circuit has been particularly fertile: Paraguayan athletes have trained at Argentine seminars and vice versa, enriching the pedagogical dialogue between both countries. This cross-border participation has helped Paraguayan ITF practitioners remain connected to the competitive standards of the region and maintain the technical level required by the ITF methodology.
Present
Organizational structure — current situation
Active ITF presence in Asunción, connected to the Argentine regional circuit
The Paraguayan ITF community maintains an active presence centred in Asunción, with dojangs that follow the ITF methodology — Tul, Sine Wave, Matsogi — in a national environment dominated by the WT federation. The connection with the Argentine regional circuit remains the main axis of competitive and pedagogical activity, given the geographic proximity and the historical relationship between both communities.
The organisational structure faces the challenge common to ITF organisations in countries where WT holds Olympic recognition: operating in a secondary institutional space, without state funding and with limited visibility. Despite this, the Paraguayan ITF practitioner community has preserved its technical identity and continues to train new generations under the authentic standards of the ITF system.
Sigue explorando
La historia del Taekwondo continúa en cada dojang, en cada clase, en cada estudiante.