Kyorugi
Sparring — there are several types of Kyorugi, and different studios practice differently. We are a family studio first and formost, so we never try to hurt each other. We always want to use control. Two students can practice together without a center judge, or in a tournament there is generally a referee as well as corner judges. Traditional Kyorugi includes punches to the face as well as kicks - both practiced with control. The center referee controls the match which is generally 3 rounds 2 minutes each.
We also practice the olympic style taekwondo WTF kyorugi is a full contact point based system, and occassionally enter Taekwondo tournaments. This type of practice has evolved from fighting external opponents in martial practice into a martial sport sanctioned by the IOC. Just as the olympic style basket ball is different than the NBA, so too is this style of free fighting. In the studio we do not practice full contact kicking to the head and body. Iinstead we emphasize control and respect for ones opponent and oneself. In this way we embody the true Taekwondo spirit.
Kyorugi tactics
Feinting — we can lead an opponent to move the way we want them to move. We do this through understanding and wisdom. Feinting is faking an attack to an area in order to lower the opponents guard, then strike a different area, for example the head. One of the most common examples of a feint is Front/Roundhouse kick. From the fighting stance position, first feint a front kick to your opponents abdomen, then when he lowers his guard to block, rotate your hip, and turn your kick into a roundhouse kick to the head.With practice, this technique can become easy to execute, and difficult to avoid. Another good feinting move is to switch your stance to draw your opponent in.
First lets describe the fighting stance. Suppose you are leading with your left foot, your right foot is back and so is your opponent. Also, assume you are a right handed/footed fighter. Your stronger right foot is back. To kick with a roundhouse kick, you kick to the closed side of your opponent - making it difficult to score. The best way to score is to score from the strong V position. In other words you are toe to toe. We call this position the neutral "Z" position. Your goal is to get into the strong "V" position. Where your opponent has stepped forward with his strong leg, and has opened his body to attack from your strong leg. There are several ways to draw back roundhouse kick. As your attacker comes forward, take a full step back with your lead foot, then bounce off that foot into a roundhouse kick.