The Seoul Times

WTF Secretary General Dong-Hoo Moon (first from left) exchanges opinions with Aleksandar Sostar, member of the Organizing Committee and president of the Executive Committee of the 25th Universiade Belgrade 2009, and Sinisa Jasnic, general director of the 25th Universiade Belgrade 2009, on taekwondo's inclusion in the program of the 2009 Summer Universiade to be held in Belgrade, Servia and Montenegro, when they visited the WTF Headquarters in Seoul on Dec. 16, 2005.

The World Taekwondo Federation had a meeting with two of the high-ranking officials of the Organizing Committee of the 25th Universiade to discuss taekwondo's inclusion as an optional sport in the program of the 2009 Summer Universiade to be held in Belgrade, Serbia and Montenegro, at the WTF Headquarters in Seoul on Dec. 16, 2005.

The two officials were Aleksandar Sostar, member of the Organizing Committee and president of the Executive Committee of the 2009 Belgrade Universiade; and Sinisa Jasnic, general director of the Organizing Committee of the 25th Universiade Belgrade 2009.

Sostar also serves as director of the Department of Sports Ministry of Education and Sports of Serbia and Montenegro, while Jasnic works as the FISU Executive Committee Assessor and president of the University Sports Association.

The Universiade is a multi-sport event that takes place every two years. Competitors must be at least 17 and less than 28 years of age, and should meet the criteria set out in the Regulations for FISU events.

Taekwondo was adopted as an optional sport at the 22nd Universiade in Daegu, Korea, in 2003 and the 23rd Universiade in Izmir, Turkey, in 2005. The organizers of the 24th Universiade to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2007 decided to include taekwondo as an optional sport in their program.

The decision to include taekwondo in the 2009 Universiade is expected to be made at the FISU Executive Committee meeting scheduled for Jan. 10-12, 2006, in Bangkok, Thailand.

The FISU regulations stipulate that there are 10 compulsory and three optional sports at the Summer Universiade.

The FISU adopted taekwondo as a single sport for the World University Championships in May 1986. Since then, there have been nine championships.

In August this year, WTF President Chungwon Choue and WTF Secretary General Dong-hoo Moon visited Izmir, Turkey to attend the 23rd Universiade. While they were there, the WTF leaders met with FISU and Universiade officials for taekwondo-related talks.