On April 22, 2023, Denis Magua was promoted to 7th Degree/ Master Level Black Belt from the International Taekwon-Do Federation in ceremonies held in London, UK.
The promotion marks a prodigious degree of skill in martial arts, character development, quality of instruction, and social mindfulness. Master Magua is the owner/ operator of the newly established Dojang Magua Taekwon-Do, on West Street in Huntsville.
Taekwon-Do ranks are achieved through years of exacting training and study, examined thoroughly in a rigorous grading system. Denis has studied Taekwon-Do since he was a teenager in South Africa, having begun other forms of martial arts training from the age of five. His passion for self-defense and self-improvement has led him from his home in South Africa to Canada and more recently to Huntsville to inaugurate his training centre. His accomplishment in ranking Master Level is all the more remarkable given his relatively young age to reach such a high degree of proficiency.
The Korean form of Martial Arts was initiated after the Second World War in 1945 based on military training that employed Japanese and Chinese traditional practices. Taekwon-Do is distinctive in its use of punching and kicking techniques, especially head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking. More than simply a program designed for self-defense, it also teaches how to concentrate the student’s inner state and presence of mind, making it a powerful, demanding course of study both physically and mentally.
The study and practice of Taekwon-Do is a lifelong dedicated pursuit that involves a lot of training and tournaments in order to rise to the black belt degree. Interwoven with personal practice, a black belt degree or dan, includes a demonstrated ability to instruct others in the art. Advancement through black belt dans in the International Taekwon-Do Federation ascends from an assistant instructor, instructor, Master, and to Grandmaster for the final and ninth dan.
Denis partnered with his brother Master Norman Magua to form the largest Taekwon-Do club in South Africa. He emigrated to Canada in 2016, setting up a club here, and then moved to Huntsville in 2021.
With two centres in Canada, Magua Taekwon-Do’s stated aim is to bring out the very best in its students. Following the traditional training regimen, including “sparring, patterns, floor exercises and set sparring, power, and special jumping/flying techniques, and hosinsul (self-defense)”. Since its inception in Huntsville, Magua Taekwon-Do has gained approximately thirty committed students.
Master Magua is deeply involved in the training methods of his students, as well as maintaining a strict discipline in his own practice. He takes pride in his capability to execute the complex demands of the sport, especially in tournaments which form an intricate part of the study.
“The sporting aspect (of Taekwon-Do) is secondary, it is a training aid to assist you in your training, whereas other martial arts base themselves on actually being a sport. The International Taekwon-Do Federation is a massive sporting aspect, but it’s never the central focus of your training. If it was, your training would be very short-lived because (there is) a certain amount of time that you compete. So, you become redundant, you become old. With traditional martial arts, you want to go a step beyond that as a way of life. It is something you should be able to continue for the rest of your life. It is about longevity in training,” states Denis.
“Taekwon-Do is paradoxical, in a lot of senses. You learn how to fight so that you don’t have to.”
Denis and his wife were drawn to Huntsville because of its lifestyle opportunities, the lakes and greenery, and especially, the hospitality of the local people. Also, he believes culturally, Huntsville is more open to the real goals and emphasis of martial arts study which is self-development.
“Our Taekwon-Do training methods forge discipline, toughness, and character. It’s for that reason classes follow a traditional approach to challenge and improve students, physically and mentally. As a result, we bring out each person’s best. We believe in individual improvement and self-betterment through training. Therefore, we guide our students to reach their full potential.”
You can find more information, HERE.
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