9th degree black belt in TKD

[ivette_green]

Sorry, that's all I know about the guy. 50 9th degree black belts? That's quite a few.

[Sam]

i believe he is a self promoted 9th degree when he started his own TKD group

[ranger1100ky]

Self promoted? Ehh..... I'm not so sure I'd go quite that far with it.

Let's you and I say, Sam... that we're 8th degrees... for the sake of arguement...

General 'testing' rule of thumb... you can promote up to one rank BELOW your own... (so a 9th degree can test a student up to 8th degree)

Who tests us for 9th degree then?

I haven't heard of a long list of 10th degrees out there... have you?

For what it's worth... Hee Il Cho has been in martial arts since just after the Korean war... if my historical knowledge is correct...

So let's say he started in 1955... just for yuks and giggles...

It's 2005 now... subtract the two numbers and you come up with 50 years... (give or take a year one way or the other... I'm not sure exactly when he DID start... I just know the ballpark figure)

50 years practicing TKD, and basically being a career martial arts instructor and school owner?

Umm... in my book... his 9th degree certificate is as authentic as you can get... (And I don't care if he found that paper in a Cracker Jack box...)

If his own students (i.e. those in his association) thought he just 'slimed his way up the ranks' and wasn't respectable and deserving of that rank and the title of Grand Master...

I doubt that AIMAA would still be around... pure and simple... and I doubt he'd have the reputation he has.

His martial history IS authentic... and if I'm not mistaken... he has been a part of the WTF and ITF and the ATA at differing times in his career... I know for a fact, that he WAS at one point, in the ATA.

Now if he'd have been in TKD for say... 15 verifyable years... I'd be the first to say.. 9th degree would be 'stretching the truth'...

But with his time in TKD? no doubt... he's paid the dues, and earned the title. (At least IMHO)

Your's in TKD!

Paul

[tufrthanu]

Most of the websites I've seen list him as being a tkd practitioner for 45 years and an instructor for 40 of those. They are vague as to who promoted him but that is a long time in martial arts. 45 years is the exact time by my calculation it would take to go from first to 9th dan.

[aefibird]

I'd say that 45 years in MA is enough to have earned that 9th degree.

Besides, if some two-bit guy who has only had 10 or so years of 'experience' can self-promote and call himself a 9th or 10th or 10zillionth dan then I'd certainly say that Hee Il Cho deserves a little self-promotion.

[Sam]

i wasnt disagreeing with his authenticity or skill - and the only person that actually promoted others to 9th would be Choi..... either way im not saying theres a problem with him...i have a huge amount of respect for Hee Il Cho....

never questions his ability/skill or deserving of the rank he bestowed on himself....... at all

[Kickbox]

I have found that the older guys 55 and up who are 8th/9th dans would rather be 35 and 5th/6th dan anyday of the week. Be careful what you wish for. If the guy is under 50 regardless of who he claims to be he's a poser.

[tufrthanu]

Hee Il Cho is like 68 kickbox...what I meant was he'd been doing tae kwon do for 45 years.

[Kickbox]

Of course He Ill Cho is a 9th dan. Ask him if he would rather be 35 again and be only a 5th dan. He will say of course! The problem with high rank is that it is acquired only with advanced age. It's not the goal but the journey to the goal that's enjoyable. Ninth dan is the end of the journey. It sounds much better before you get there.

[aefibird]

I get what you're saying and I agree.

In a way, it's like my own situation. I wish I'd started karate at a younger age. I was only 20 when I started, but I still felt a little 'left behind'/'left out'. I wish I could've started when I was a child.

I'd rather be (say) 11 and a whitebelt than older and a dan grade.