With a successful Paris 2024 Paralympics for its athletes, GB Taekwondo announced the launch of an exciting new campaign – Fighterbility – which will create the opportunity for new athletes to join GB Taekwondo on its mission to win Paralympic medals in LA 2028. The programme will also provide a path for individuals with upper-limb impairments to join the sport and benefit from the fun, fight and fitness of Taekwondo.
To find out more about this programme, we spoke to taekwondo coach Josh Calland, who trained with the ParalympicsGB team. Here, he shared his background in taekwondo, what it was like working with the Paralympic squad, watching some of them win gold, and his involvement in the new Fighterbility campaign.
Josh Calland on getting into taekwondo
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Josh Calland is a taekwondo coach at Whiston Taekwondo in Liverpool and was the training partner for Amy Truesdale, Matt Bush and Beth Munro, three athletes who represented ParalympicsGB at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Josh began by telling us how he got into taekwondo: “I was a full-time GB taekwondo athlete for eight and a half to nine years. I first started taekwondo when I was nine.
“Growing up in Liverpool, me and my brother were just playing outside and things like that. And then my dad was just looking for something for us to do to get us off the streets and get us into something that’s exercise and discipline as well as something for self-defence.
“We tried a couple of martial arts and as soon as we tried taekwondo, we both fell in love with it. I’ve just carried on ever since. After watching the 2012 Olympics, I realised I wanted to try and do that myself and make that my goal and my achievement.
“Then, at the end of 2014, after training consistently in World Taekwondo for two years, I got invited to join GB Taekwondo and become part of the national team and become a full-time professional athlete. From there, I’ve competed in World Championships, major championships and Grands Prix. I’ve also been a training partner now for two Olympic Games as well.”
Josh then explained some of the benefits of people taking part in taekwondo: “I think taekwondo is such a great sport for all. I think it’s very inclusive, whether you want to become a full-time Olympic athlete or a Paralympic athlete.
“Or you can just do it to have fun, train for fitness, train for discipline or make friendships. I think there’s a lot of different avenues within taekwondo where it’s not just a fighting sport.”
Josh also mentioned how Para taekwondo differs from able-bodied taekwondo: “With the Paralympic taekwondo, there is a slightly different rule set in which you can’t kick to the head due to the safety of it and not being able to use both upper limbs. So, it is more focused on the body shots completely, which changes the game plan and changes the tactical point of view from able-bodied taekwondo, where you can kick to the body and head.
“But it’s difficult in different ways as different kicks will be used and the different styles in the fights as well. Also, the rounds are different. So, for able-bodied taekwondo, there are three two-minute rounds. However, in Paralympic tae kwon do, there is one five-minute round.”
Josh Calland on training with the ParalympicsGB taekwondo squad
As a training partner for the ParalympicsGB athletes, Josh played an important part in their preparations, leading to Amy Truesdale and debutant Matt Bush winning their first-ever Paralympic golds.
Speaking about the Paralympians he trained with, Josh said: “It’s amazing. I’ve known them now for many years. I’ve done training with them before. It’s great to see that taekwondo is for everyone. So if you have got that disability, or any disability, where you feel like you can’t do something, watch them do taekwondo at the highest level at the Paralympics. It’s great to see that their disability hasn’t affected them or stopped them from being able to do that at the highest level.”
As for seeing Amy Truesdale and Matt Bush win gold in Paris, Josh added: “It was amazing. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it out to Paris to go and watch, but I was watching it on the telly at home, cheering. I was just so happy for them after doing the training with them and being there for their journey. It was great to see them pull out the gold medals.”
Fighterbility: supporting the next generation of Para taekwondo athletes
Making it clear that sport is for all, the project is aimed at interested parties from the age of 15 and up with an interest in the all-action, dynamic sport. Fighterbility is a call to action for those able to compete at the K44 classification looking to find a sporting community.
Fighterbility will help match individuals with local training centres offering inclusive taekwondo training classes, helping them make their first foray into the sport, gaining the level of discipline afforded by adrenaline-fuelled combat sport training.
Through Paralympic qualification, the project, in its essence, is about providing young people with upper limb impairments the confidence to get involved in the sport, to find their inner fight and to help grow the community of Paralympic athletes enjoying the benefits of the sport.
With Fighterbility, GB Taekwondo is working to remove barriers, which often keep people across the country from taking part in and enjoying the sport and, in turn, inspire a new generation of taekwondo heroes.
To support Fighterbility’s aims, GB Taekwondo is working alongside taekwondo clubs nationwide to provide coaching for sporting newcomers all across the country. He associated clubs are:
- Bradford – Horizon Taekwondo Academy
- Cardiff – Taekwondo Cymru
- Chorley – AD Taekwondo
- Doncaster – Scorpion Taekwondo
- Fife – Central Taekwondo Academy
- Halifax – Focus Taekwondo Club
- Huddersfield – Quest Taekwondo
- Liverpool – Whiston Taekwondo
- London – Peak Performance Academy
- Southampton – Passion Taekwondo
- Wakefield – Black Widow Taekwondo
Josh is part of the Whiston Taekwondo club in Liverpool and explained more about his involvement in the campaign and how people can get involved:
“I’m working with Steve Green at GB Taekwondo with Fighterbility, which is a programme that’s looking to get more people with upper limb deficiencies into taekwondo. We’re such a growing sport all over the world and we’re also trying to grow it here in the UK. So, if you have half a limb on your upper arm or from the wrist upwards, we encourage you to try and get involved in a local club.
“ It’s definitely such a good programme to get people involved in the sport, especially those who maybe think they can’t get involved in sports such as football or something else. Whereas taekwondo is a sport that can get you involved in doing something physical. It is still a contact sport as well. I know people like to do contact sports.”
Josh also shared about a Para athlete who attended his taekwondo club: “We did have Kiera Forsythe, who graduated into the GB Taekwondo full-time academy a couple of years ago. She used to train at our club two to three days a week, and now she is trying to qualify for LA 2028.”
Although Fighterbility is specifically for people with upper limb impairments, due to the fact the Paralympic programme currently only includes the K44 classification, Josh has assured us at a local club level, people of all abilities are welcome to join taekwondo:
“From the Fighterbility side, that is just the combat side of taekwondo. In the traditional side of taekwondo, we have other categories, such as neurodiverse as well as visually impaired categories and wheelchair categories.”
To register your interest in the Fighterbility project, please use the Expression of Intent form or visit the GB Taekwondo and British Taekwondo websites.