6. 5
ABSTRACT
Taekwondo is an ever-expanding Olympic sport that is gaining more and more
interest from spectators and practitioners alike. The number of athletes in all
age groups around the world is increasing rapidly with organized federations
reaching 208, according to the World Taekwondo Federation. But what is
particularly striking and needs scientific research is its rapid dissemination
either in a mass scale or in a highly competitive level to the people over the
age of 40 who wish to take up the sport of Taekwondo or recollect previous
motor experiences knowing the multiple benefits of the sport. Therefore, the
shift of veteran athletes and new trainees at this age in Taekwondo is due to
the beneficial effects of this alternative form of exercise on various body
systems such as muscular, cardiovascular, circulatory, neurological system, on
the psychology of individuals, but also in the rehabilitation of health problems
that plague their daily lives. Therefore, the main goals of this project are to
present the sport of Taekwondo as an appropriate exercise tool to improve the
quality of life of people over 40 through the prevention, treatment and
rehabilitation of health problems, as well as the normalization of chronic
disease status. The method used is to extract information from books, from
reputable scientific search engines, such as “pub med”, as well as publications
and articles in international literature journals.
Key words: Taekwondo, veteran- athletes, prevention, treatment,
rehabilitation, chronic diseases, body (organ) systems.