Information for Beginners

Beginners Courses are run regularly at our Schools in Galway city, Tuam, and Athlone. For class times etc click here.

Dates for commencement of next Beginner's Course (Click here for full information)

Athlone - Saturday 11th September

Galway City - Monday 4th October

Tuam - See Tuam Website for Details

Content of Classes?

For the beginner's programme, the class usually consists of plenty of warm up exercise and stretching followed by practising basic blocking and punching techniques. This takes up much of the class, as it is very important for the students to learn good basic techniques. The students also practise their techniques on focus pads. Close range self defence techniques are also practised. The class usually finishes with cooling down and stretching exercises. No equipment is needed to start with - a tracksuit and T-shirt or other loose fitting clothing is fine.

Costs?

Tuition fees vary from School to School, however, at all of our schools you will find that the fees are very reasonable and discounts are available for families. Consult the instructor for the school in question regarding fees. Contact details at the end of this page.
New members are required to register with the Republic of Ireland Taekwon-Do Association (RITA) within one month of starting Taekwon-Do.
This provides the student with full membership of the Republic of Ireland Taekwon-Do Association (R.I.T.A.) and the International Taekwon-Do Federation (I.T.F.). Upon registration, the student will receive their grading licence, membership cards, and I.T.F. membership badge, a student handbook worth €7.00, as well as being entitled to participate in all R.I.T.A. organised events such as gradings, tournaments, courses and seminars. They will also have a copy of the "RITA News", the association's regular newsletter, posted to their home.Association fees are €33.00 for Juniors (-18) and €55.00 for Seniors (18+) and these are renewed in October every year.

Gradings?

These are the promotion examinations through which the student progresses up through the grades and are held approximately every three months. The Examiners to the Galway & Athlone Taekwon-Do Schools are Mr Robert G. Howard 6^th Degree Black Belt, and Mr. Mark O’Donnell 5^th Degree Black Belt, both ITF certified International Instructors and Examiners.

Uniforms?

Official Taekwon-Do uniforms are available through the School and cost €42.50, but do not need to be purchased until shortly before the first grading exam (usually after two to three months of training). These uniforms are durable and last for many years. It can be considered as a one off purchase.

Questions?

If you would like any more information or would like to book a place on the next beginners course, please do not hesitate to contact the relevant instructor for the area you are interested in. We would be more than happy to help.

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