Welcome to The Tech Race.
The ancient martial art of taekwondo
has embraced the future at the Olympic Games.
Technology has brought the centuries-old martial art
into modern times.
(WIRELESS SCORING SYSTEM)
The wireless scoring system makes taekwondo
fairer for contenders and leaves no room for dispute.
This scoring system creates a more engaging experience
for the audience as they can follow in real-time.
Head sensors were introduced at the Olympic Games in Rio 2016,
taking the technology to a new level.
(REPUBLIC OF KOREA)
(SEOUL)
Taekwondo originally comes from Korea.
In its capital, Seoul, we witnessed a first-hand
demonstration of this technology.
The taekwondo scoring method makes you
distinguish where the hit comes from.
The sensor needs to detect
whether it comes from a foot or a knee.
The high-speed kicks of taekwondo are nearly impossible
to follow without technology.
This system allows judges to see with precision
the movements of each athlete.
This is important as different points are awarded
depending on where the opponent is hit.
Before the sport, especially in the major competitions,
there was lots of controversy.
Judges and referees were not getting the accurate scores
down on paper.
The sport was not very accurate at all.
People didn't think taekwondo a legitimate sport for
the Olympic Games.
In addition to the chest guard,
the evolution of the wireless scoring system
has introduced sensors in foot and head protection,
increasing the utility and accuracy
of this technology in taekwondo.
The combination of sensors can detect
the different types of hit and transmit this information
wirelessly to a computer,
where it is used by judges to award points to combatants.
A basic attack to the trunk protector is one point,
and two points if the kick uses a spinning technique.
To obtain three points, the athlete needs to reach
the opponent's head protector.
Achieving this with a turning kick means four points.
Punches and kicks must be powerful
because light tapping kicks do not earn points.
This technology also aids judges in awarding extra points
for strikes that incorporate spinning kicks,
accurately and in real-time.
We will test out...
the system today,
which means that we can compete without a judge.
Before the invention of the technology,
we sometimes looked at ourselves in the mirror
to see how we were doing it.
Taekwondo is a sport
that everyone can learn and enjoy.
In English, taekwondo means,
"the art of the feet and the hands" -
first appearing as a demonstration sport at
the Olympic Games Seoul 1988,
and becoming an official sport in Sydney 2000.
During Beijing 2008,
Sarah Stevenson was at the centre of an extraordinary
controversy when judges did not award points
for a high-kick to the head.
She appealed, and the British fighter won the fight.
Stevenson went on to take home a bronze medal,
winning Britain's first Olympic medal in taekwondo,
showing the inconsistencies in judging by eye.
Our next improvement goal is to make the electronic gear
easier for the athletes to use, optimising their performance.
Also it's very important to make them lighter
so that the athletes don't get tired so much
after several games.
You beat me because you were lucky.
No, I'm not better than you.
In order to keep up with the evolution of the Olympic Games,
sports must join the tech race.
(THE TECH RACE)