Taekwondo Kicks: All 19 Explained — Korean Names, Mechanics, and Competition Data

Taekwondo's kicking arsenal covers 19 distinct techniques, from the basic front snap kick (ap chagi) to the airborne 360° tornado kick (gyro dollyo chagi). World Taekwondo (WT) — the sport's Olympic governing body — reports more than 200 member national associations, making taekwondo one of the world's most widely practiced martial arts. This article catalogs every kick with its Korean name, romanization, biomechanical notes, competition point value under WT rules, and the training corrections that separate a functional technique from a gym-only exercise. Browse the full taekwondo technique library on Fight Encyclopedia.

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Taekwondo emerged as a unified Korean martial art in the early 1950s, when nine Korean kwans — competing fighting schools that had flourished after the end of Japanese colonial rule — began consolidating their curricula under government pressure. The name itself spells out the art's priorities: tae (태, foot), kwon (권, fist), do (도, way or path). The name was formally adopted in 1955 at a committee convened by General Choi Hong Hi. He subsequently founded the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) in 1966, establishing the first comprehensive technical encyclopedia of the art's kicking techniques. [1]

The emphasis on leg techniques draws from two older Korean traditions. Subak, a kicking-focused folk combat sport documented during the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392), is frequently cited as a precursor in Korean martial arts historiography. Taekkyeon (also romanized as taekkyon), a fluid folk art that uses elaborate foot-sweeping, pushing, and tripping techniques, is considered a closer technical ancestor, though the exact lineage from taekkyeon to modern taekwondo is contested among martial arts historians. What is uncontested is that the kwans deliberately elevated kicking above punching as the art's defining identity, distinguishing it from Japanese and Chinese imports. [2]

The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF, renamed World Taekwondo in 2017) was founded in 1973 and became the sport's Olympic governing body. Taekwondo appeared as a demonstration sport at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 1992 Barcelona Games, then became a full medal sport at the 2000 Sydney Olympics — a status it has held at every Summer Games since. [3] The Olympic competition rulebook is the most consequential shaping force on modern kick technique: it awards 1 point for a trunk kick, 2 for a head kick, 4 for a spinning body kick, and 5 for a spinning head kick, while capping punches at 1 point with no spinning multiplier. These rules did not describe how taekwondo was being practiced — they prescribed how it would evolve.

Every taekwondo kick follows the same three-phase mechanical structure: chamber, pivot, extension.

Chamber: The knee rises toward the hip, loading the leg for delivery. The chamber height and angle define the kick — a high forward chamber prepares a roundhouse; a hip-level sideways chamber prepares a side kick.

Pivot: The support foot rotates on the ball, opening the hip. This rotation is the primary power generator for all circular kicks. Elite practitioners generate peak impact forces of 1,000–4,500N depending on kick type and distance, with head kicks in experienced competitors averaging approximately 2,000–3,500N. [4]

Extension: The leg drives toward the target along the path set by the chamber. The striking surface varies by kick:

• Ball of foot (ap gubi): ap chagi, bituro chagi
• Heel: dwit chagi, naeryeo chagi, golcha chagi
• Instep (baldeung): dollyo chagi (standard), an chagi
• Side edge of foot (balnal): yeop chagi, twit yeop chagi
• Sole: mireo chagi, noollo chagi

The WT scoring system has a direct effect on training priorities. A rear-leg spinning head kick (5 pts) scores five times more than a body punch (1 pt). This explains why taekwondo practitioners at elite level develop extreme hip flexibility and train high-line attacks obsessively. Unlike the Muay Thai clinch and knee game — where the clinch controls distance and the body is the primary kick target — Olympic taekwondo competition treats the head as a premium target worth constant pursuit.

The following table uses Revised Romanization of Korean (official system since 2000). Hangul is included for each technique.

Point values per WT Competition Rules 2024. Spinning/turning kicks earn the 4/5-point bonus; all other kicks earn base 1/2. "—" indicates the technique does not directly score in standard WT sparring competition. [3]

Dollyo Chagi — #4 (Turning Kick / Roundhouse)

The most-used kick in elite WT competition, accounting for approximately 47–55% of all scoring techniques. [5] The rear-leg version pivots the support foot 90–180°, drives the knee across and upward, then extends the leg with the instep striking the target. The hip rotation is the primary power source. In competition, the question-mark kick — a variant that feints a body dollyo chagi before redirecting the trajectory to the head — is one of the most-used deceptive techniques at Olympic level.

The full biomechanics breakdown, with high-speed video analysis, is in the companion article: how to do the perfect roundhouse kick.

Browse the roundhouse kick taxonomy →

Twit Huryo Chagi — #11 (Spinning Heel Kick)

The highest-scoring kick in standard WT competition at 5 points to the head. The fighter rotates 180°, temporarily facing away, then whips the rear heel in a circular arc. The rotation makes it harder to read than a standard roundhouse but requires more setup time. Hwang Kyung-seon famously landed this technique to secure a point in the 2012 London Olympic final. The catch: the rotation window creates a blind spot that a disciplined counter-attacker can exploit.

Browse the hook kick taxonomy →

Gyro Dollyo Chagi — #13 (Tornado Kick)

A 360° rotation roundhouse. The fighter steps forward, spins a full revolution, and delivers the roundhouse at completion. Requires explosive core rotation and exceptional timing. In competition, it generates a 4-point body score or 5-point head score — the same as the spinning heel kick — and is favored by taller practitioners who can generate a longer rotational arc. See the spinning-turning kick taxonomy for the tornado kick's mechanical sub-variants.

Twimyo Yeop Chagi — #17 (Jump / Flying Side Kick)

The flying side kick does not earn a point bonus for being airborne under current WT rules (it scores the same 1/2 as the standing yeop chagi). Its primary competition value is distance coverage — the jump allows the fighter to close a half-meter gap that the standing version cannot reach. Historically, the flying side kick is associated with board-breaking demonstrations; in actual competition, it is used selectively as a counter-attack when the opponent retreats.

Browse the flying kick taxonomy →

Naeryeo Chagi — #6 (Axe Kick / Downward Kick)

The heel descends vertically onto the opponent's head, shoulder, or arm. Unlike most kicks, the naeryeo chagi does not follow a horizontal or rotational arc — it rises first (like a crescent kick to head height) and then comes straight down. The impact surface is the heel. Competition use is moderate because the kick must reach head height to score and exposes the attacker's base during the upswing. In karate forms and breaking demonstrations it appears frequently; in live sparring it functions primarily as a block-breaking distraction.

The roundhouse kick's numerical dominance is a direct product of the scoring system. Because the head counts double and requires no spin, the head-level dollyo chagi delivers the most consistent risk-adjusted return. Spinning kicks deliver more points per landed technique but are landed far less frequently — they are high-variance, high-reward attempts rather than bread-and-butter weapons.

Taekwondo's kick-first scoring structure places it in a distinct category among striking arts. A full cross-disciplinary analysis appears in the karate vs. taekwondo comparison article, but the key structural differences:

The ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) differs from WT in assigning similar value to power kicks regardless of target height — a full-power body kick and a head kick carry equivalent weight in ITF forms evaluation, whereas WT's competition rules tip the balance toward the head entirely. For a full breakdown of karate style differences that bear on this comparison, see karate styles: Shotokan, Kyokushin, Goju, Shito.

1. Not pivoting the support foot. A flat-footed pivot blocks hip rotation and puts shear load on the knee. For every kick from dollyo chagi to yeop chagi, the support heel must lift and the toes must rotate. Practitioners who skip this step generate 20–30% less force and risk medial knee strain.

2. Chambering with visible wind-up. Opponents read the knee rising. Elite practitioners pre-rotate the hip fractionally before the chamber is visible, compressing the telegraph window. Drill chamber-and-fire at full speed with no preparatory hip shift.

3. Striking with the wrong surface. Ap chagi uses the ball of the foot; striking with the toes causes metatarsal fractures. Yeop chagi uses the balnal (outer blade); a flat heel strike on a side kick wastes force and jams the ankle. Each of the 19 kicks has a specific designated contact surface.

4. Landing out of balance. After a high kick, the leg must return along the same arc or plant in a stable stance. A kick that lands with the fighter stumbling forward is a free counter-attack opportunity for the opponent. Practice the return trajectory explicitly.

5. Training only the rear leg. The rear leg is more powerful, but elite taekwondo is won or lost on front-leg speed — the lead-leg dollyo chagi is harder to read and faster to reach the target. Train both legs to the same standard.

6. Attempting spinning kicks without safe entries. The 4- and 5-point spinning kicks require reliable entry setups. A spinning kick without a solid entry is a gift to any counter-attacker. Master the 180° pivot from fighting stance before chaining it into a full spinning heel kick.

7. Overextending the support knee. On high kicks, the body's natural compensation is to lean backward. This reduces the kick's height requirement but locks the support knee in hyperextension. Keep a slight flex in the support knee throughout the technique.

How many official kicks does taekwondo have? The 19 techniques cataloged here represent the recognized standard curriculum across WT and ITF systems. Both share the 10 fundamental kicks (#1–#10 in the table above); spinning and jumping variants differ slightly in sub-classification between the two federations. Some advanced curricula list additional sub-varieties (jump spinning heel kick, etc.), bringing the total past 25 when sub-variations are counted.

Which taekwondo kick generates the most force? Biomechanically, the rear-leg back kick (dwit chagi) generates the highest peak impact force among linear kicks, because the leg extends fully in the same direction as the hip drive. Falco et al. (2009) found that among trained practitioners, back kick peak forces were comparable or superior to roundhouse kicks at equivalent distances. The roundhouse's advantage in competition is not power but speed, targeting flexibility, and ease of head-level delivery.

What is taekwondo's signature kick? The spinning heel kick (twit huryo chagi) is the technique most associated with competitive taekwondo internationally, partly because it scores the maximum 5 points and partly because the rotation makes it visually dramatic. The dollyo chagi (turning kick) is the actual workhorse — it accounts for the majority of scoring actions at every level.

What is bituro chagi and where does it appear in competition? Bituro chagi (twisting kick, #5) follows an outwardly curving trajectory that bypasses straight-line defenses — the foot travels out then curves in, arriving from an unexpected angle. It is particularly associated with ITF taekwondo, where it appears in forms (poomsae/tul) and sparring. In WT Olympic competition it is rarely used as a primary scoring weapon, but appears as a setup to draw a defensive reaction before a follow-up dollyo chagi.

How long does it take to learn a spinning kick? The standard learning progression for twit huryo chagi (spinning heel kick, #11): (1) stationary 180° pivot landing heel-first, (2) add the heel whip without a pad, (3) hit a hanging pad from a stationary stance, (4) add footwork. Most beginners require 6–12 months of consistent drilling before the technique is fast and stable enough for sparring. Attempting spinning kicks in sparring before the base 180° pivot is automatic risks poor landing mechanics and knee injury.

Is the flying side kick effective in competition? Under current WT rules, the flying side kick (twimyo yeop chagi, #17) scores the same as its standing equivalent — no point bonus for the jump. Its competition value is distance coverage and surprise, not point incentive. In the flying kick taxonomy, entry variants (running, step-up, counter) are documented separately. It remains more common in breaking demonstrations and forms than in live sparring competition.

How does ITF taekwondo differ from WT on kicks? ITF taekwondo (based on General Choi Hong Hi's 15-volume encyclopedia) assigns equal technical weight to body and head kicks and includes techniques like bituro chagi and goro chagi that appear less frequently in WT curricula. WT's competition rules explicitly incentivize head kicks and spinning kicks. The 19 kicks in this article span both systems; ITF practitioners also use additional sub-categories and forms-specific techniques not listed here.

Are low kicks allowed in taekwondo? Not in WT or ITF sparring competition — kicks below the waist are prohibited, and leg kicks are not scored. This is a significant difference from Muay Thai (where the low kick is a primary weapon), K-1 kickboxing, and MMA. Some traditional taekwondo styles and self-defense curricula include low kicks, but they play no role in the sport competition ruleset that shapes how most practitioners train globally.

1. Choi, H. H. (1985). Taekwon-Do: The Korean Art of Self-Defence (3rd ed., 15 vols.). International Taekwon-Do Federation. The authoritative ITF technical encyclopedia cataloging technique classification, including the kicking taxonomy.

2. Hwang, I. (1993). Taekkyon: A Traditional Korean Martial Art. Hollym International Corp., Seoul. ISBN 978-0930878757. Primary reference on the relationship between taekkyeon and modern taekwondo.

3. World Taekwondo (WT). (2024). World Taekwondo Competition Rules and Interpretation (effective September 1, 2024). World Taekwondo Headquarters, Seoul. Retrieved from https://www.worldtaekwondo.org/rules/competition-rules. Official rulebook governing point assignments (Trunk Kick = 1 pt, Head Kick = 2 pts, Spinning Body = 4 pts, Spinning Head = 5 pts).

4. Falco, C., Alvarez, O., Castillo, I., Estevan, I., Martos, J., Mugarra, F., & Iradi, A. (2009). Influence of the distance in a roundhouse kick's execution time and impact force in expert and novice practitioners of taekwondo. Journal of Biomechanics, 42(3), 242–248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2008.10.031. The benchmark study on taekwondo kick force measurement.

5. Santos, V. G. F., Franchini, E., & Lima-Silva, A. E. (2011). Relationship between attack and skipping in taekwondo contests. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 25(6), 1743–1751. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181ddf36c. Competition action analysis used for scoring technique frequency data.

6. Kukkiwon. (2022). Taekwondo Textbook (rev. ed.). Kukkiwon (World Taekwondo Headquarters), Seoul. Official WT technical manual; authoritative source for Korean nomenclature and technique classification.

7. Kim, J. W., & Park, Y. S. (2015). Analysis of taekwondo competition scoring patterns in the 2012 London Olympic Games. International Journal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 14(3), 814–824. Data source for competition kick-frequency statistics.