Ahn’s Taekwondo Masters and Instructors
Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn
Owner
Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn is a world-renowned and influential taekwondo master from Korea who has just recently moved to the United States. Plainsboro is lucky to have such a prestigious grandmaster in New Jersey. Fellow taekwondo athletes are honored to have him so nearby. Grandmaster Ahn holds a Kukkiwon Certified 8th degree black belt and it is not surprising that he comes from a family of taekwondo grandmasters: an older brother who holds a 9th degree black belt and a younger sister who holds a 8th degree black belt. With over 45 years of martial arts experience, he is an undoubted expert of poomsae forms. Having studied and analyzed the movements in such depth, Grandmaster Ahn knows poomsae forms inside and out. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Kyung Hee University in taekwondo (the best university in Korea that offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in taekwondo) and has a master’s degree from Korea National Sport University in taekwondo theory.
To further develop taekwondo for the sport to stay relevant in the Olympics, Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn was one of the few important personnel involved for the changes; he was one of the influential members who was responsible for the amendments that were made to the poomsae forms, a patterned series of offensive and defensive techniques performed against an imaginary opponent. Poomsae forms were being reformed and modified to keep up with the times and Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn was one of the research teams that helped restructure the remodeled rules and regulations for the modern poomsae competitions.
From among many awards and recognitions, Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn received the Presidential Award in 2016 from South Korea for the contributions and accomplishments he had made to the taekwondo worlds. He was appointed as a national representative head coach and had all gold medalist winners in the World Taekwondo Poomsae Championships of 2012 and 2013. In addition to all his achievements, Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn also co-authored taekwondo training books to help other masters of taekwondo, realizing that not enough books were available for the training for taekwondo masters.
The newest chapter for Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn is his new organization, Hongik E-Hwa. Hongik E-Hwa is a masters research center where Grandmaster Ahn has challenged himself to educate the best and established taekwondo masters for the purpose of passing along his ideals and knowledge of the authentic taekwondo and to be able to execute the skills and techniques with accuracy and precision.
Poomsae seminar invitations have taken Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn all over the world, including to Belgium, China, France, India, Iraq, Japan, Korea, and the United States. Having recently moved to the United States with his family, he is looking forward to meeting the new students of his school in Plainsboro while staying active internationally.
Instructor Tiara Katz-Swinson
Junior Instructor
Instructor Tiara Katz-Swinson “Instructor Kay” is certified as a 2nd Degree Black Belt with Kukkiwon (World Taekwondo Headquarters). A 1st degree black belt, she has been practicing Taekwondo for 6 years with as many years of teaching experience in and out of the martial arts. Dedicated to pursuing her passion for taekwondo, she has progressed in her studies quickly, earning her black belt despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Passing this discipline to her students, she specializes in working with younger students, integrating physical fitness and exercise into fun and engaging activities. She holds her students to the same high standards she expects of herself while offering compassion, respect, and understanding to each individual. Her ultimate goal is to improve her own skills as well as lift up her fellow students in the practice of taekwondo.
Instructors Rhea Agarwal and Anagha Anish
Assistant Instructors
Instructors Agarwal and Anish are certified 1st Degree Black Belts. They have been dedicated students with Ahn’s Taekwondo for over 4 years and have shows remarkable leadership skills. Grand Master Ahn, hand picked these two amazing students to train for Instructors. He sees in them the skill and discipline he wants every student to have.
Ahn’s Taekwondo Legacy
Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn
Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn, the head master and owner of Ahn’s Taekwondo in Montgomery, is a Kukkiwon Certified 8th degree black belt. Born in Korea into a family of taekwondo grandmasters, she was naturally introduced into the taekwondo world and has been training for over 35 years.
Gender did not stop her from being a pioneer as a woman in taekwondo. She endured and persevered the rough and tough world of the male-dominated sport by competing and training alongside her male counterparts.
Through the persistence of the demanding and rigorous environment that Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn experienced, she was instilled with a unique, special, resilient, and indomitable spirit of taekwondo, and when the women’s division formed, it was no surprise that she was awarded first Pplace for sparring at the Korean National Women’s Championship in 1984.
When Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn’s college aspirations led her to Paris, France, her dedication to teaching and training taekwondo continued. She was determined to pass on the passion, spirit, and the genuine ideas of taekwondo to the next generation.
When she finally came to the United States, her dedication continued; with the skills and knowledge she accumulated from France as well as at the two schools she managed in Indiana, she challenged herself with her own school in Raritan, New Jersey before she started the school in Montgomery, where she is now fully committed.
Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn is also earnest in sharing with her community; she supports local causes and her DEMO team participates and performs at local charity events as much as possible.
Beyond the local causes, Grandmaster Anna Ys Ahn serves on the board for many taekwondo associations across the United States.
Her efforts were noticed when she was among the select few who were invited to be a VIP Delegate to the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016.
Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn
Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn is Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn’s oldest brother. He holds a Kukkiwon Certified 9th degree black belt, which is the highest rank that one can achieve. He was one of the youngest to achieve such a goal in 2012 at the age of 57. He is still physically and mentally at the top of his game.
Among other numerous awards, the most prestigious is the fact that at the age of 40, he was a poomsae division national champion for 3 straight years, which allowed him to be named for the MVP award for 3 consecutive years. As a result of such national success and bringing pride to South Korea, Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn was honored with the Presidential Award for receiving the National Championship for 3 years in a row.
Being an educator was a part of his life as was competing. They came hand in hand; he knew how to use his body and was able to transfer it over to teaching. He was an excellent and an outstanding demonstrator and was able to incorporate his model movements into examples for others. Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn resides in Seoul and has been one of the certified head instructors for Kukkiwon, the World Taekwondo Headquarters, for over 20 years. He was also the chairman of the poomsae judge committee for the Korea Taekwondo Association.
Together, Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn with his younger brother Grandmaster Jae Ro Ahn were two of the founders to the ongoing research team to restructure and amend the rules and regulations for the modern poomsae forms for competition.
Grandmaster Jae Yoon Ahn’s skills and knowledge are astounding as exhibited, as an outstanding demonstrator and as an informative instructor. He is always working towards the advancement of taekwondo and is the front runner in research and preservation of taekwondo. The great demand for his instruction for seminars takes him globally; he has taught at over 40 countries worldwide.