Totally Tae Kwon Do Magazine - Issue 17 - Usadojo

Master Philip Ameris -
I must first say that I am
honoured to be testing
under Grandmaster Cho
for 8th dan. It is a
humbling experience to
be the first person in the
AIMAA to test for this
high level. As far as my
training, I train all the
time. In the past 40
years that I have been
doing martial arts I have
always trained, so
preparing for the test is
a day to day regiment
that I always do. I have
increased some areas
of my training as far as
breaking and curriculum.
Karim Belgacem -You are the AIMAA
Technical Director. Can you tell us what
this involves?
Master Philip Ameris - Being the AIMAA
Technical Director requires me to organize
and introduce updated training
routines. Much as
Grandmaster Cho has
done by introducing
many innovative
teaching methods, it is
my responsibility as
Technical Director to
always improve our
AIMAA students training
and curriculum.
Karim Belgacem - With
the popularity of MMA,
do you feel that it is
hurting or enhancing the
popularity of martial
arts?
Master Philip Ameris - MMA as well as all
forms of martial arts competitions have
their place. There is a select few martial
artists that will participate
in this type of
competition. However,
with the influence of
mainstream media and
how MMA competitions
are promoted, there can
sometimes be a negative
effect on what
traditional martial arts is
all about.
If you look at a lot of
martial arts, masters of
the past have always
i n c o r p o r a t e d
various disciplines into
their training; such as a
lot of Korean stylists
are both black belts in
Tae Kwon Do and Judo,
as well as a lot of Karate
masters study Judo or Aikido or some
other form of grappling art. So in reality,
mixed martial arts have been around for
generations. The problem
that I see with MMA is that it is a sporting
event and is not really portrayed as martial
arts that emphasizes the character building
a n d w h i c h
can be practiced by
anyone regardless of
age or physical
abilities. Grandmaster
Cho has always told us
when we were
competing, "You are a
champion for
a day, but you are a
martial artist for a
lifetime." I believe that
the martial arts should
be viewed in a more
respectful and
disciplined manner.
However, a lot of times
this does not sell tickets;
the general public wants
the "bad boy" image and conflict. I have
tremendous respect for many of the
current MMA champions that come from
Totally Tae Kwon Do - 9