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Also see the Helmets! Good? or Bad? topic.

Probably the single most important piece of equipment that helped make Taekwondo popular around the world was the foam equipment implemented in the early 1970's. Before them, accidental contact while sparring often resulted in some type of injury. The equipment has now allowed everyone to spar in relative safety.

Safety equipment is any padded, stuffed, or solid sportswear that protects a person from incurring injury and it also protects the person from inflicting injury. The degree of physical contact desired or the fighting style determines the amount and type of protective wear used. Master Jhoon Rhee, considered the father of American Taekwondo, is the man most people credit with introducing safety equipment ( Safe-T-Punch/Kick) to martial arts tournaments in the 1970's. Although its use is now worldwide, there is still controversy about its use.

Types of Protection

• Head protector. A padded helmet (with or without cheek protections) to protect the head from strikes. The helmet protects the boney parts of the head but not the face (some helmets do offer protection for the cheek bones).

• Face protector. A metal or plastic cage that protects the face. Many be freestanding or used in conjunction with a head protector.

• Safety glasses. Prescription or plain sports glasses or empty sports frames that protect the eyes from damage.

• Mouthpiece. A rubber device that is placed over the upper or upper and lower teeth. It protects the teeth and holds the jaw in a locked position, enabling it to withstand blows.

• Chest protector. A hard or semi hard device to protect the fighter's front torso from injury.

• Groin cup. A hard plastic cup that protects the groin from attacks.

• Elbow protectors. Pads that cover the elbow to protect it during from strikes and while striking.

• Hand Bandages. Long, cotton straps that are wrapped around the fighter's wrists and knuckles, compressing them in a tight union so the hand becomes a solid striking unit. They also help prevent wrist sprains and knuckle dislocations.

• Forearm protectors. Pads that cover the forearms to protect them during from strikes and while striking.

• Hand protectors. Pads or gloves that cover the hands (either partial or complete) to protect them during while striking and protect the opponent from strikes.

• Knee protectors. Pads that cover the knees to protect them during from strikes and while striking.

• Shin protectors. Pads that cover the shins to protect them during from strikes and while striking.

• Foot protectors. Foot pads that protect the upper foot, but leave the sole of the foot uncovered for better floor grip. Protects the feet during striking and protects the opponent from strikes.

There were hand protectors available before the foam ones, but they were relatively expensive and awkward to use. Some were just variations of boxing gloves.

Even in boxing, the wearing of gloves while sparring is a fairly modern convention. Prior to 1866, when the Marquis of Queensbury Rules made the wearing of gloves mandatory, boxers fought bare-knuckled. Gloves, or “mufflers” as they were called, were used only in training not in an actual match.

One might think that bare-knuckled fighting would be brutal to the hands. Today, a common injury among young boxers is called the “boxer’s fracture,” in which the outer two knuckles, and sometimes the outer metacarpals of the hand are broken from the impact of an unprotected punch. Even boxing greats like Mike Tyson have broken their fists in this way when engaging in street fights. The danger, however, is significantly reduced through the biomechanics of throwing a bare-fisted punch. Punching in old style boxing was built primarily on linear action, and emulated the thrust of a sword. When a blow was thrown, a vertical fist was used, rather than today’s horizontal fist that is used in Taekwondo as well as boxing. Some martial art styles used the vertical punch as their primary punching method.

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