ITFNZ National Award Briefs

Every year, the members and instructors of ITFNZ Taekwon-Do nominate the best of their peers for these prestigious awards. There are five awards: Gup Student of the Year, Dan Student of the Year, Instructor of the Year, Club of the Year, and The President's Award for Outstanding Contribution to Furthering ITFNZ Taekwon-Do.

Each region selects one nominee for each award, based on submissions from instructors and students in their region. To be nominated, in itself, is recognition of tremendous achievement and dedication.

The winner of each award is selected by a panel comprised of two members of the Marketing Committee, and one ITFNZ Taekwon-Do senior black belt. Award nominees are not on this panel. The selections are based on written submissions about the nominees from the regions.

Gup Student of the Year
This award is presented to an outstanding coloured belt student who is actively involved in ITFNZ Taekwon-Do. He or she may have high achievements in gradings or tournaments, may help regularly at club, and may be involved in organising regional or national events. This person will have excellent moral character, and be a strong exponent of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.

Dan Student of the Year
This award is presented to an outstanding black belt student who is actively involved in ITFNZ Taekwon-Do. He or she may have high achievements in gradings or tournaments, may help or assist regularly at club, and may be involved in organising regional or national events. This person will have excellent moral character, and be a strong exponent of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.

Junior Student of the Year
This award is presented to an outstanding student who is under 18 years of age and actively involved in ITFNZ Taekwon-Do. He or she may have high achievements in gradings or tournaments, may help or assist regularly at club, and may be involved in organising regional or national events. This person will have excellent moral character, and be a strong exponent of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.

Instructor of the Year
This award is presented to an outstanding instructor of an ITFNZ Taekwon-Do club. He or she may have achieved a high proportion of students graded, and may have a very high pass rate. His or her students may have great success in tournaments. The instructor may have overcome major challenges, or may be heavily involved in organising regional or national events. He or she will also have excellent moral character, and be a strong exponent of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.

Club of the Year
This award is presented to an outstanding ITFNZ Taekwon-Do club. The club is likely to have a great culture and atmosphere, and may even socialise together. It will be well represented at all regional and national events. The club may be large relative to the local community, or be growing at a healthy rate. The club may also be successful at gradings and tournaments. The members will have excellent moral character, and be strong exponents of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.

The President's Award for Outstanding Contribution to Furthering ITFNZ Taekwon-Do
This award is presented to someone who has made outstanding contributions to furthering ITFNZ Taekwon-Do. This person need not be an ITFNZ Taekwon-Do member, but he or she will have helped ITFNZ Taekwon-Do in some major way. He or she may be the backbone of a region – organising everything, or helping everyone. He or she may have written a major report, or been instrumental in getting ITFNZ Taekwon-Do great media exposure. Whatever the activities, the person will have dedicated a great deal of his or her time to furthering ITFNZ Taekwon-Do. He or she will also have excellent moral character, and be a strong exponent of the tenets of Taekwon-Do.