Taekwondo made its first appearance at the Olympics as a demonstration sport at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. The opening ceremony featured a mass demonstration of taekwondo, with hundreds of adults and children performing moves in unison. Taekwondo was again a demonstration sport at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Taekwondo became a full medal sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and has been a sport in the Olympic games since then.
Taekwondo competitions at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing were held from August 20 to August 23. The tournament was held at the Beijing Science and Technology University Gymnasium. There were four weight categories for both men and women. Each NOC can enter 2 men and 2 women, but only 1 athlete per weight category. There was one global Olympic Qualification Tournament and one qualification tournament for each continent. In addition, 4 invitational places were awarded.
Taekwondo competitions at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London was held from 8 August to 11 August at the ExCeL London. Competition was held in eight weight categories; four for men, and four for women.
Taekwondo at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro took place from 17 to 20 August at the Carioca Arena 3 inside the Barra Olympic Park in Barra da Tijuca. Around 128 taekwondo fighters competed in eight weight categories; four for men, and four for women.
Taekwondo at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo featured 128 taekwondo fighters competing in eight weight categories; four for men, and four for women. The 2020 Olympics were postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Turkey competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Since the nation's debut in 1908, Turkish athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, except for three occasions. Turkey failed to register any athletes at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, did not attend the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles at the period of worldwide Great Depression, and also joined the United States-led boycott, when Moscow hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics. The Turkish team consisted of 103 athletes, 55 men and 48 women, across twenty-one sports.
Mongolia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Since the nation made its debut in 1964, Mongolian athletes had appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, with the exception of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, because of its partial support to the Soviet boycott.
Azerbaijan competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's sixth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era.
Uzbekistan competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's sixth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era.
Turkey competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the nation's official debut in 1908, Turkish athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, except the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles at the period of worldwide Great Depression, and the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow because of its support for the United States-led boycott.
Uzbekistan competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the nation's seventh consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era.
Cuba competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Cuban delegation was their smallest since 1964, which coincidentally was also in Tokyo. It was the nation's twenty-first appearance at the Summer Olympics. Cuba improved on its 2016 result, by winning 7 gold and 15 total medals after 5 and 11 in Rio.
Iran competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place during the summer of 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the nation's return in 1948 after having made their debut in 1900, Iranian athletes have attended every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, with the exception of 1980 and 1984 which they boycotted.
Azerbaijan competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the nation's seventh consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era.
Tunisia competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the nation's official debut in 1960, Tunisian athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, except the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow because of the nation's partial support for the US-led boycott.
Morocco competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place during the summer of 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 Games were the nation's fifteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics.
Jordan competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place during the summer of 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the nation's 11th consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics.
Taekwondo competitions at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens were held from August 25 to August 28. There were four weight categories for both men and women. Each NOC could enter 2 men and 2 women, but only 1 athlete per weight category. There was one global Olympic Qualification Tournament and one qualification tournament for each continent. In addition, 4 invitational places were awarded.
The taekwondo competitions at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris are scheduled to run from 7 to 10 August at the Grand Palais strip. 128 taekwondo fighters, with an equal distribution between men and women, will compete across eight different weight categories at the Games, the same amount as the previous editions since Beijing 2008. Each weight category is composed of sixteen taekwondo fighters; however, this figure may increase if additional athletes are invited and selected from the Refugee Olympic Team.
This article details the qualifying phase for taekwondo at the 2024 Summer Olympics. The competition at these Games will comprise a total of 128 taekwondo fighters coming from their respective NOCs; each can enter a maximum of eight taekwondo fighters, with one in each bodyweight category and four for each gender.
