Hanmadang: Competition, creativity meet on the mat

Bryson Gordon, a MooDo Taekwondo student, demonstrates a flying side kick during the 2024 Oregon State Hanmadang at the Bob Keefer Center last weekend. The 5th-annual Hanmadang hosted a martial arts expo on Friday and tournament on Saturday, with multiple Star Wars themed events for May 4. The event is put on each year by Tim Greathouse, owner of Eugene’s MooDo Taekwondo and the Oregon president of the U.S. Taekwondo Committee.

By Ryland Bickley
The Chronicle 

SPRINGFIELD – Hanmadang is a Korean word with an English translation close to “festival” or “all are welcome.” It’s also the namesake for the 2024 Oregon State Hanmadang, a nonprofit martial arts tournament that ran Friday-Saturday in Springfield’s Bob Keefer Center. Competitors entered from across Oregon and beyond to participate in a variety of non-sparring activities. 

Promoted as the track-and-field of the martial arts world, the event lived up to…

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