Like many other martial arts, the Korean style of tang soo do practices sparring as a way of building rhythm, timing, technique and a sense of calm competence under pressure. Traditional sparring methods in tang soo do include the competitive "free sparring" most people are aware of. However, it also encompasses a number of training drills designed to develop skill against a live, moving target.
Sparring Basics
In a sparring session, two students face off against each other. One or both practice making attacks while the other defends. It's a mock fight, designed to develop the attributes a martial arts practitioner would use in a real street combat situation. Sparring drills can be cooperative, where the main goal is for both participants to learn about movement and coordination. It can also be wholly competitive, where two athletes work against each other to determine a victor. Most sparring exercises fall somewhere between these two points on the continuum.
Tang Soo Do Free Sparring
Free sparring is highly competitive, where two tang soo do practitioners "fight" against one another in a safely controlled environment. Under traditional point scoring rules, you may score a point by striking your opponent with either leg or with a closed fist from the rear arm. Sweeps, throws and open hand strikes are forbidden. Sparring matches typically last until a certain number -- or margin -- of points is scored, or to a set time limit. In timed bouts, the winner is the competitor who scored the most points during the match.
One-Step Sparring
One-step sparring isn't always one step. It's a term tang soo do practitioners use to describe a choreographed series of attacks and blocks. A simple drill would consist of one partner making a punch and the other blocking with a prescribed response. More advanced drills add additional moves, complex footwork and alternation between who attacks and who defends. The most complex one-step drills might look like a real fight to an outside observer.
Other Sparring Drills
Other sparring drills used in tang soo do training continue to focus on a give-and-take between two practicing students. One example is the five-step drill, where one participant makes five consecutive attacks, each of which his partner must block. Another is "positional sparring" where participants don't attack each other, but instead vie for advantageous position using nothing but footwork and body language. There are hundreds of traditional sparring drills in the tang soo do repertoire, each based on teaching a specific skill or set of skills.
References
- Street Survival Academy: Tang Soo Do History
- "Martial Arts of the World"; Thomas Green; 2001
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