The Ghana Taekwondo Federation (GTF) has launched an awareness campaign targeting five regions and aimed at introducing more school children to Taekwondo.
The launch in Kumasi over the weekend, had about 500 pupils from 10 private schools in attendance.
Under the theme “Promoting Taekwondo Awareness, Discipline, Fitness and Youth Development,” the campaign will cover the Ashanti, Northern, Upper West, Bono and Central regions.
It is designed to increase participation in Taekwondo, identify young talent and promote the sport’s wider benefits, including discipline, physical fitness, self-defence and confidence.
Launching it, the President of the GTF, Mr Frederick Lartey Otu, said the Federation wanted to broaden the role of Taekwondo beyond competitive sport.
“The future of Taekwondo in Ghana lies not only in producing champions, but also in producing disciplined, responsible and confident young people,” he said.
Mr Otu said the programme seeks to introduce Taekwondo to more schools and communities while creating opportunities for promising young athletes to progress from school and community programmes to regional and national competition.
He said the success of the initiative would depend on collaboration among schools, parents, teachers, coaches, sports authorities and Taekwondo associations.
The Executive Director of the Ghana National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS), Obenfo Nana Kwasi Gyetuah, called for a change in the way sports is handled in the education system.
He said sports should not be regarded as an activity that came after academic learning but as an important part of developing children.
“For too long, we have treated sports as something children do after the real learning is done. Sport teaches discipline, focus, respect, resilience, teamwork and leadership. These are not extras. They are the very foundation the transformed learner Ghana needs.”
He said Taekwondo could support both physical and character development because it required discipline, focus and self-control.
He urged schools and parents to give sports the time and resources needed to enable children to participate meaningfully.
The Ashanti Regional Director of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Nana Gyaama Dakwa, pledged the Authority’s support for the campaign and encouraged more schools to participate.
She said Taekwondo could help children develop physical fitness and mental alertness, while also equipping them with self-defence skills.
The launch featured demonstrations by schoolchildren and Taekwondo practitioners, including Poomsae and self-defence techniques.
The GTF National Executive Board also presented uniforms and equipment to the Ashanti Regional Taekwondo Association to support the training and development in the region.
Also in attendance were school proprietors, teachers, parents, coaches, Taekwondo officials, the Ashanti Regional Director of GNACOPS, Edward Akanzu Ise and others.
BY TIMES SPORTS REPORTER
You can now read the *Ghanaian Times* and *The Spectator* newspapers digitally on [TimesNewsPlus](https://timesnewsplus.com/newspapers).
Follow our WhatsApp Channel now! https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
