ESTEVAN — For Don Dechief and Wayne Brown of Estevan, taekwon-do has long been more than an interest or martial art. It's grown into a lifestyle, for which they are thankful for adding to their lives, and in which they recently reached a new and very high milestone.
The Estevan Taekwon-do Club members, who have dedicated over 35 years to the sport, were recently tested for seventh-degree black belts, which carries a designation of master. They joined only three other Canadians with the Global Taekwon-Do Federation (GTF) distinction, and are among very few people globally holding that level of mastery, skill and commitment to the martial art.
The test was held in Toronto on Feb. 9 in the presence of the only two higher-ranked GTF Taekwon-Do professionals in Canada – grandmaster Vito Palella and Linda Park, who is an honorary grandmaster, the GTF president and the wife the late Park Jung-tae, the GTF founder and a pioneer of that martial art in Canada.
"There was lots of nervousness and anxiety. It was a little different, because we've been through many testings, from colour belts to first degree, second degree, third degree, fourth grade, fifth degree, sixth degree, and there's always nervousness, because you always want to present your best. But this was a little extra nervousness because you're in front of grandmaster Palella and Mrs. Linda Park," Brown shared.
"You train for years and years and years, and you wait for that time, and you've done these patterns and you put in your teaching time and feel good about it. But when you get there, there's that anxiety, that nervousness that kicks in because honourary grandmaster Linda Park was in attendance, along with our grandmaster Vito Palella," Dechief said, echoing Brown's emotions after testing.
"But we had to stay focused, so we got past that and just went into the state of mind doing what we always do. We turned that nervousness around into something we could use, and it worked out well. We were really happy. And Mrs. Park and Grandmaster Palella were really happy with the outcome."
"[Afterwards] it felt totally surreal," Brown added. "It really was. It was, obviously, a relief to have the test over with, but also a surreal and humbling, very humbling experience at that moment."
In taekwon-do, for each of the nine black belt degrees, a person has to wait and practise the amount of years of their current rank. Brown and Dechief received their sixth-degree black belts in 2018, and ever since have been working towards the next one.
"To get to the seventh degree, you have to train, teach and so on for six years before you're able to go for your seventh degree," Dechief explained.
"You have to put in your time, you have to continue to promote taekwon-do, and I really appreciate what Global Taekwon-Do has instilled as far as not moving from first degree to seventh degree in a few years. It takes commitment," Brown noted.
"With the Global Taekwon-Do Federation, there's a total of 30 patterns, which are movements that we … learn, to go for our master's degree. We had one pattern left to learn between sixth and seventh [degrees], and that pattern name was Tong-Il [56 movements]. Once we learn that one, we keep practising, and then, when our time comes for testing, we have to know that one plus all the previous patterns. So that testing day, we had to be ready to perform any one of those 30 patterns, and then we were asked to perform, I believe, 11 of those patterns. And we did it successfully, so we're pretty happy," Dechief shared.
"This is the biggest moment in my career," Brown added.
Brown took an interest in taekwon-do in 1987, and Dechief joined in 1989. Back then, neither of them aimed as high.
"When I started taekwon-do back in 1987, the goal was never to become a master. The goal was to become a black belt, that was the hardest thing to attain," Brown shared. "And then, once it came to black belt, I found out that training just began ... And by then it had become a way of life. So, I knew I would never leave taekwon-do because it's just who I was becoming.
"Ever since I joined, I was immediately taken aback by it. Obviously, the physical aspect of taekwon-do is quite amazing ... But it was more than even the mental aspect, more than discipline, it was the tenets of taekwon-do – courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit, which really spoke to me. In short order, I've recognized that this is just a way of life. Not only do you display this when you're training, but also in life. And I give a lot of credit to taekwon-do for my success outside of it," he added.
Early on in his taekwon-do journey, Brown travelled all across Canada, participating in tournaments and seminars, and later went to Scotland as a black belt to partake in the international championship.
Throughout his journey, Dechief also partook in many tournaments and seminars, as well as two world championships: one in St. Louis, Miss., in 1997; and one in Scotland in 2011, where he earned a gold medal in patterns and a bronze medal in sparring. Dechief said for him taekwon-do is a lifestyle, something that never stops, progressing one step at a time.
"When I first started, my instructor at the time was a third-degree black belt. And I thought, 'That'd be cool to get to that rank.' I never saw it coming to where I am now, that's for sure. But it's definitely a lifestyle. We've taught for years and years. And we've seen so many students go through our club, black belts, I can't even begin to tell you how many. It's been a journey, and a journey that not going to end either, it will continue," Dechief said.
They've trained thousands of students and promoted numerous black belts over the past three decades. With taekwon-do being an intrinsic part of their lives, the men plan to continue the journey. It takes about seven years to qualify for the next rank, but their tasks will be different now as with a master's designation comes an even stronger emphasis on the promotion of taekwon-do globally and instructing rather than personal training.
"When you advance in degrees, your role changes. You participate as an official but more importantly, as an instructor and do seminars and stuff like that. So, my role is to train now," Dechief said. "As masters now, we are [also] required to travel taking the seminars to stay current with all the techniques, with all the grandmasters, because GTF is worldwide, and it's very important for us to do those things. So, I look forward to it."
"From here on in to go to eighth degree or ninth degree is going to be based on your commitment and dedication to the Global Taekwon-Do Federation … Now our responsibilities have spread from the local or provincial clubs to more of a global capacity," Brown said.
"So, going forward, I continue to be the same person that I always was. I love training. I love teaching. And I will continue to promote Taekwon-Do," he added.
Already in the new roles, they held a seminar in Moose Jaw in mid-February for the Saskatchewan GTF black belts, with 17 training from throughout the province.
Dechief and Brown thanked the Estevan Taekwon-Do executive and others involved for their support.
"I learned so much from our students, and I continue to do so. I can't thank everyone in our Taekwon-Do family enough for helping me to get to where I am. And my wife and my family, without their support and sacrifices ... it wouldn't happen either," Brown said.
"My journey has been filled with so many inspirational individuals and amazing experiences and opportunities. I can't speak enough about the lifelong friendships I've made with so many people along the way, and we still get together on a regular basis. I thank taekwon-do and GTF for that. And my goal right now is to help create opportunities and experiences for other students and instructors to share the same special moments," he added.
