How to join the RITA/ITF from another Taekwon-Do organisation.

FAQs

Q. I am black belt in a different Irish Taekwon-Do organisation and would like to join the RITA. What is the first thing I should do?
A. The student/instructor relationship is an important part of being a martial artist and should not be broken easily. First, talk to your instructor and explain why you are unhappy and wish to leave their dojang/association. Maybe you can work out your differences.
Failing that, you should make an informal approach to one of the RITA masters listed below listed below. They can help to guide you through the process and answer any questions you have before you start the official process.
Master Robert Howard (Robert.howard@rita-itf.org)
Master John Jacob (John.jacob@rita-itf.org)
Master Valerie Keane (secretary@rita-itf.org)
Master Floyd Keane (Floyd.keane@rita-itf.org)
Master Stephen Doyle (Stephen.doyle@rita-itf.org)
Master Donal O’Doherty (donal.odoherty@rita-itf.org)
Master Martin Murphy (martin.murphy@rita-itf.org)

Q. Will my degree (1st to 3rd degree) certificate be recognised by the RITA and ITF?
A. If you are a 1st to 3rd degree the RITA will recognise your rank immediately. In relation to getting a new ITF (based in Vienna) certificate you have two routes.
(i) You can ‘switch’ your certificate. With the assistance of our national secretary, you can send a photocopy/scan of your old certificate with a small fee to the ITF HQ in Vienna and they will send you a new ITF certificate with the same date as your old cert.
(iii) Wait until you are due to grade for your next higher degree and grade under the RITA’s examination panel. If you are successful, our national secretary will apply (with your fee) for your new higher grade certificate along with the other successful RITA black belts and you will receive your new higher degree ITF certificate in a few weeks. The date of your new cert will be that of the RITA grading.

Q. Will my degree (4th to 6th degree) certificate be recognised by the RITA and ITF?
A. If you are a 4th to 6th degree the RITA will recognise your rank immediately. However, in relation to getting a new ITF (based in Vienna) certificate you should do the following (this is based on the ITF rules).
(i) Train and work with an assigned RITA ITF master to identify any small differences in patterns, understanding, philosophical and cultural aspects of Taekwon-Do etc. After about a month an agreed date will be set for an assessment where you will get to perform your patterns before a RITA appointed assessor. This will be a chance for you to receive further guidance so that your techniques and understanding of align with those of how we perform our patterns in the RITA. However, from experience there are minimal differences between the interpretation of patterns at the higher grades in Ireland. Once the assessment procedure is complete, you can ‘switch’ your certificate. With the assistance of our national secretary you can send a photocopy/scan of your old certificate with a fee to the ITF HQ in Vienna and they will send you a new ITF certificate with the date of your assessment by the RITA. Under special circumstances and in agreement from the ITF, this date may modified to match the date of the applicant’s original certificate date.

Q. Will my masters degree masters (7th or 8th degree) certificate be recognised by the RITA and ITF?
A. If you are a 7th to 8th degree master the RITA will recognise your rank immediately. However, in relation to getting a new ITF (based in Vienna) certificate you should do the following (this is based on the ITF rules).
(i) Train and work with an assigned RITA ITF master to identify any small technical differences in patterns etc. After about a month an agreed date will be set for an assessment where you will get to perform your patterns before a RITA appointed assessor. This will be a chance for you to receive further guidance so that your techniques and understanding of align with those of how we perform our patterns in the RITA. However, from experience there are minimal differences between the interpretation of patterns at the higher grades in Ireland. Once the assessment procedure is complete, you can ‘switch’ your certificate. With the assistance of our national secretary you can send a photocopy/scan of your old certificate with a fee to the ITF HQ in Vienna. The ITF Executive Board (EB) will meet to discuss/approve your transfer and they will send you a new ITF certificate with the date of EB meeting. Under special circumstances and in agreement from the ITF, this date may modified to match the date of the applicant’s original certificate date.

Q. Will my Grandmasters (9th degree) certificate be recognised by the RITA and ITF?
A. There is no mention of Grandmaster degrees transfer certificates in the ITF rules. However, many GMs have joined the ITF from other groups over the years. We assume that this is done on case by case basis. As the majority of GMs in Ireland can trace their roots back to the early days of the RITA, we will do its utmost to support you in your application to transfer to an ITF 9th degree certificate.

Q. I am a black belt with a different Taekwon-Do group in Ireland, can I compete at your European or World Championships?
A. There are many high quality Taekwon-Do athletes in Ireland and we would love to give you the opportunity to represent your country at these events. There are also veteran (40 year plus) black belt divisions which some of you might like to compete in. In order to represent Ireland via the RITA you must fulfil the following criteria.
(i) Hold an ITF (based in Vienna) 1st to 6th degree certificate.
(ii) Be the correct age based on the categories of that championships (child: 11-13 years, junior: 15-17, senior/adult: 18-39, veteran: +40 years)
(iii) Meet the any criteria set by the tournament organising committee.
(iv) Be selected by the RITA national coach.
(v) Have the appropriate funding to fund yourself. Just to note many RITA international competitors receive very good (70—100%) financial support from the RITA and its sponsors.

Q. Will my non-RITA umpire qualifications be recognised by the RITA and ITF?
A. The RITA will recognise your national umpire qualifications immediately. Many non-RITA certified umpires judge at RITA run tournaments every year and do a great job. However, it makes sense to attend the next RITA umpire course identify and difference in the rules between difference organisations. The RITA umpire committee will work with you to bring you up to speed.
International umpires who attend the European & World championships are selected by the EITF and ITF and Irish umpires who are selected will need to have an ITF (based in Vienna) umpire certificate. The RITA umpire committee will work with you to help you to achieve these qualifications.

Q. Can I grade my own students?
A. Instructors who are 4th degree and above and hold an international instructor’s certificate can grade their own students (colour belt). Degree promotion gradings are performed by the RITA examination panel.
If you have an international instructor’s certificate from a different organisation you can still grade your own students however you should attend an ITF international instructor’s course at the next available opportunity and apply for a new international instructor’s certificate from the ITF (Vienna). The RITA may appoint a more experienced RITA examiner to sit with you at a few grading to help you and your students make the transition to the RITA syllabus.
If you are a 1st-3rd degree instructor, the RITA will appoint and examiner for your school. This examiner will also be considered your instructor and mentor and they will help both you and your students to progress in Taekwon-Do and the RITA.

Q. I am an instructor and I want to join the RITA but my students have just paid their association fees to our old organisation. Do I have to pay more association fees again to the RITA?
A. We do not want to see Taekwon-Do students unfairly treated especially if they have previously paid association fees to another association in good faith. This will be looked at on a case by case basis and it will depend on the time of year (e.g. renewal dates of feed etc). The RITA will treat this as fairly as it can and it is possible that your students will not have to pay RITA association fees until an agreed upon renewal date.

Q. Will I need to get a new dobok?
A. RITA members wear the official RITA/ITF dobok brands of Sasung and Dae-Do. These are bought through the RITA. As an instructor it would make sense for you to get one of these as soon as you can. Your students can switch doboks naturally as they grown out of their old ones. New 10th kup students should wear official RITA doboks when they join. All students attending the RITA black belt gradings are expected to wear official RITA Sasung or Dae-Do doboks.

Q Will my Garda Vetting, child protection and first aid courses be recognised by the RITA?
A. All RITA instructors, assistant instructor, helpers and any adult working regularly with child or vulnerable people in your dojang will need to be Garda vetted by the RITA. This is standard practice across all martial art, sporting and community bodies in Ireland.  Your child protection (safe guarding 1,2 or 3) and first aid courses will be recognised but will need to be renewed after the appropriate time e.g. 2-3 years.