Injury Rates in Children Participating in Taekwondo Competition

OBJECTIVE: To report rates of injuries sustained during Junior taekwondo competitions. DESIGN: Prospective. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected with simple check-off forms that describe the athlete, nature, site, circumstances, and severity of the injury at three major taekwondo tournaments involving a total of 3,341 boys and 917 girls. MAIN RESULTS: No difference was found between boys (58.34/1,000 athlete-exposures) and girls (56.57/1,000 athlete-exposures) in total injury rate (p > 0.05). Collapsed over gender, significant differences (p = 0.013) in injury rates of body parts were found with the lower extremities (21.83/1,000 athlete-exposures) ranked first. Unblocked attacks are the major cause of injury in both boys and girls. CONCLUSIONS: Coaches are advised to work on the blocking skills of their Junior taekwondo athletes. No head contact for children in taekwondo competition should also be considered.