It features four weight classes for men and women -- flyweight, featherweight, welterweight and heavyweight -- that range from 128-176 pounds for men and 108-148 pounds for women.
The competition runs from Sept. 27-30 and takes place at the State Sports Center.
Taekwondo has roots in ancient Korean martial arts and was created in 1957.
Points are scored by delivering strikes to specific areas on the opponent's body -- the head, abdomen and the sides of the body. Strikes must be made with the foot below the ankle or by the knuckles of the index and middle fingers.
Full-point penalties, known as gam-jeom, include deliberate attacks to the back and face or throwing an opponent. Half-point penalties, or kyong-go, include holding, pushing, grabbing, turning your back to your opponent or feigning injury.
A match consists of three three-minute rounds with one-minute breaks between rounds. A contestant can win by knocking down an opponent for 10 seconds or by winning the most points.
If a contest is tied, the person who scored the most points other than penalties is the winner. If there is still a tie, the referee decides the winner.
However, in the gold-medal match, a sudden-death round is contested. If no point is scored, the referee decides the winner.
Tournaments are single elimination. The bronze medal is decided in a single-elimination mini-tournament between those that lost to the finalists before the semifinals and the losers of the semifinals.
Taekwondo
