Mr. Stephen Tapilatu V Dan from the Netherlands conducted seminars in ITA club Rivervalley TKD, in Swords, Co. Dublin on Saturday and Sunday the 1st and 2nd of February 2014.

Mr. Stephen Cooley VI Dan, instructor in Rivervalley TKD and one of the coaches to the Irish National Team hosted the event. Clubs from across Ireland attended the event, which was divided into 2 parts, one seminar each day for those 12 years and under and the other for teenagers and black belts. From an instructors point of view it was a very beneficial event as Mr. Tapilatu imparted his knowledge in a very clear and detailed way and all the instructors who attended came away with some excellent new ideas. For the students who took part it was an intensive and enjoyable seminar as everyone worked hard, gained new ideas and a fresh perspective on ITF sparring. Mr. Tapilatu is one of the most well well known names in ITF Taekwon-Do. He was 2 times world champion in ITF but also ranked among the top fighters in WTF and later in professional MMA.

This is the second time Mr. Tapilatu has been invited to Ireland within the last 12 months. He first attended last year as the special guest for the ITA Summer Camp. ITA instructors and the Irish National Team coaches were so impressed with his classes at that event that Mr. Cooley decided to invite him back for another event. We highly recommend organising an event with him for any association looking to improve their knowledge on ITF sparring.

A few words from Icon Promotions Director, Ms. Lyndsey Conway about the event:

The seminar of the weekend was very engaging, lots of important competition advice from Mr.Tapilatu , interesting perspectives from him as a successful competitor and now a head coach of National Team Holland. Stephen is a very direct and informative in his approch to conducting a seminar , whilst at the same time still managed to educate participants with ease, he explains critical ways to create precision , and ties in a great deal of entertainment for everyone present. I love his raw opinions on the application and effectiveness of sparring as a sport and as an art form. If you only "listened" during this seminar , you would come away a very satisfied person. A short visit, yes, some smart training plus the golden advice is what I know will satisfy those who attended. My only area of concern would be that although many competitors appeared to be present , I feel its a duty of their instructors who really need to be on the floor together with them absorbing the knowledge they need to feed into their competitors over time. Overall great weekend with positive feedback from all who took part .

Stephen Tapilatu is an i-con for many reasons and is an exceptional rolemodel for all sportspersons to follow.He's more than just a pretty face , heh, he's intelligent and charming too. I-Con ProMotions is proud to have him on the team!

Stephen Ryan
Secretary General
Irish Taekwon-Do Association