Suk Jun Kim

Grandmaster Suk Jun Kim, 9th Dan, is a first-generation student of General Choi Hong Hi and a pioneer of traditional Taekwon Do. He was inducted into the Official Taekwondo Hall of Fame in 2011, and the head of the Taekwon Do International union. Grandmaster Kim has over 50 years of experience teaching Taekwon Do and still personally teaches many of the classes in New York City today. He considers his school to be a place of learning, and his teaching method emphasizes the traditional values of discipline, practice, hard work, and focus.

In 1973, Grandmaster Kim won the Masters Association Open Championships and the South Atlantic Championship in free fighting, and between 1975 and 1980 he performed annual demonstrations in Madison Square Garden. Master Kim has established schools all over New Jersey, Bergenfield NJ was his main school. And opened his first school in New York City in 1988.

A turning point in his development as a martial artist came in 1976 when General Choi Hong Hi selected him, the founder of Taekwon Do and the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF), to become one of the original members of the ITF Demonstration Team. As part of the ITF Demonstration Team, Grandmaster Kim spent the next 10 years traveling the world, visiting five continents and many countries. As General Choi’s student, he also taught seminars for black belt instructors worldwide.

Although Master Kim’s experience and knowledge of Taekwondo is still sought after both internationally and elsewhere in the United States, he has dedicated himself to teaching his students in New York City. As such, many of his former students now travel from other countries and other states to continue training with him. For the last chapter, Grandmaster Kim hopes to become a better teacher and practitioner of Taekwondo and to produce black belts that will contribute to the continuation and promotion of traditional Taekwon Do.