General Choi Hong-hi

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General Choi was born in what was to be North Korea during the Japanese Colonial Period and died in P'yŏngyang, the North Korean capital. During his adult life, however, Choi lived in Japan, South Korea, and Canada gaining the rank of "Major-General" during his career in the South Korean army.

As a Brigadier, Choi served as the Chief of Staff to General Paik Sun Yup, the first Korean officer to achieve four-star rank in that army. General Paik Sun Yup refers to Gen. Choi in his memoirs, Pusan or Panmunjom or one of the finest officers he worked with. He was also a Major General, two stars. From the public record, it appears that, as an officer in the army of a nation fighting a terrible war on their own soil, General Choi never held a combat command nor ever performed duties which would have placed him in harm’s way as a soldier. Choi did go on to command an infantry division before retiring, but it was a training division, and stationed on an off-shore island.

As a boy he was educated in Korea under the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula. At that time, many of the traditions of the Korean people were suppressed by the Japanese, including the country's ancient martial arts, which were and still are renowned for the dynamic kicking techniques that are taught in them. Choi Hong Hi claims he was trained in the Korean martial art of Taekyon in secret. However, the Korea Taekkyon Association states these claims were false. When he became older he went to Japan to study at university, there he claimed to have trained in Shotokan Karate and achieved the rank of black belt within two years of training. He used Tae Hi to combine aspects of karate with aspects of the ancient Korean martial arts and founded the Oh Do Kwan.

He later fled the country and eventually settled in Canada for the rest of his life. While he did make several visits to North Korea, he never lived there, returning there permanently only when he was about to pass away. His claim as founder of Taekwondo is disputed by the vast majority of senior Taekwondo masters, although there is no denying that he coined the term "Taekwon-Do" and was at the forefront of the movement to unify the various kwans.