Frequently Asked Questions

All class instructors have relevant insurance and DBS checks as well as first aid and child protection/safeguarding training. Instructor qualifications are monitored and reviewed by GBTSDA.

New starters begin in just t-shirt/jogging bottoms casual sportswear moving on to the white do-bohks suits when ready. Indoor training is in bare feet.

The costs start at £20 per month for one session per week. On top of this there is a £15 per year GBTSDA membership fee.

7+ for normal training. Between 5 and 7 is possible but should be discussed with the instructors for suitable times and curriculum.

Tang Soo Do shares roots with traditional karate and uses similar stances, strikes, and forms. However, it incorporates more kicking techniques than many karate styles. Compared to modern sport Taekwondo, Tang Soo Do places a greater emphasis on traditional forms and values rather than Olympic-style competition. Competitions follow World Tang Soo Do Association rules and include patterns (Hyungs), sparring, and breaking.

We train at three venues in and around Ely:

• Mondays – St Peter’s Village Hall, 41 High Street, Wilburton, Ely CB6 3RA (6:30–8:00 PM)
• Tuesdays – Paradise Centre, Newnham Street, Ely CB7 4PQ (6:00–7:00 PM)
• Thursdays – The Hive, Leisure Park, 15 Downham Road, Ely CB6 2FE (6:30–8:00 PM)

All venues have parking available.

Tang Soo Do is a traditional Korean martial art with roots going back over a thousand years. It emphasises forms (Hyungs), self-discipline, and precise technique, using striking, kicking, and blocking. Unlike sport-focused martial arts, Tang Soo Do retains a strong focus on character development and traditional values alongside physical training. It is practised by students of all ages and abilities.

Absolutely. Many of our students begin as adults with no prior martial arts experience. Classes are structured so beginners train alongside more experienced students, with instructors tailoring guidance to each person’s level. There is no upper age limit — if you are fit enough to train, you are welcome to join.

Sessions start with a line up in grade order, bowing to the flag and instructors followed by a warm up and stretching period to get ready to train. The rest of the session will be split into sections focusing on different aspects of Tang Soo Do, practicing blocks, strikes and kicks in various combinations, individually or in pairs. The session ends with bowing out to the flag and instructors again.

Sessions are between 1 and 2 hours long depending on the day/venue and your grade. A junior grade will typically do 1½ hour sessions.

Yes. Tang Soo Do teaches practical striking, blocking, and evasion techniques that are effective in self-defence situations. Training also builds physical fitness, spatial awareness, and confidence — all of which contribute to personal safety. That said, the primary focus of Tang Soo Do is personal development and discipline rather than combat alone.

Yes, Tang Soo Do shares many similarities with traditional Japanese karate — so much so that it is sometimes described as “Korean karate.” Both are striking-based arts that emphasise kicks, punches, and blocks, and both use a structured sequence of movements (called hyungs in Tang Soo Do, and kata in karate) to develop and preserve technique.

The key difference is in origin. Tang Soo Do is a traditional Korean martial art with roots in Korean fighting traditions stretching back many centuries. The name came into common use after 1945, and the art is closely related to the styles practised in Korea before the government standardisation movement of the 1960s that led to the creation of Taekwondo.

In practice, Tang Soo Do places a strong emphasis on powerful kicks and fluid hand techniques, with a curriculum that includes forms, one-step sparring, self-defence applications, and — at senior grades — traditional weapons. Students with a background in Shotokan, Wado-ryu, or other karate styles often find Tang Soo Do familiar and transition comfortably. Complete beginners are equally welcome — no prior experience is needed to join our classes in Ely and Wilburton.

All belt progression (other than the first 10th to 9th Gup) is the result of a grading. These are examinations, held either regionally or nationally, where students are asked to demonstrate their abilities in front of a panel of senior GBTSDA instructors. The format of a grading tends to follow a typical training class so it will feel famililar to most students.

You only grade when your instructors feel you are ready. For junior grades they can grade every 24 lessions and at least 3 months training, for higher Gup grades it will be 60 lessions/6 months, Cho Dan Bo’s (blue belts) at least a year and Dan (black belts) grades take an increasing number of years between grading.

A junior Gup grading will be about 45 mins to an hour long, higher Gup grades will stretch this out maybe to an hour and a half as more syllabus needs covering. Grading to an early Dan grade involves about a 3 hour pre-test followed by a longer, up to 4 hour, main test.

The time varies depending on how regularly you train and how quickly you progress through the Gup (colour belt) grades. Typically, a dedicated student training two or three times per week can expect to reach 1st Dan (black belt) in around four to six years. There are ten Gup grades before black belt, each requiring a formal grading assessment passed in front of an examiner.

Absolutely not. Some students like competing while others do not, competitions are an additional aspect of Tang Soo Do and GBTSDA memberships.

GBTSDA runs two championships a year.

• Nationals – Held in spring/summer in Nottingham, central to all regions.
• Regionals – Held in autumn/winter, location moves around the country to favour a region, often to help promote Tang Soo Do in that area, celebrate a regions anniversary, celebrate significant individual acheivements etc.

In addition, students are able to also compete in:

• European – Held every two years in the summer normally.
• Worlds – Held every two years in America.

Normally there are:

• Hyungs (form/pattern) – Students demonstrate one of their higher forms.
• Sparring – 1-on-1 sparring for points, low/no contact with head/hand and foot guards for safety.
• Weapons – Senior grades who are eligible can demonstrate their weapons Hyungs, in bow-staff, dagger or sword depending on rank.
• Team Hyungs – Teams of three demonstrate a form.

For our youngest members following a Tiny Tigers curriculum there is, instead, a Hyung or technique demostration as well as simplifed 1-on-1 sparring style game where they attent to pull tags from their opponents belt.