跆拳道（英文：TAEKWONDO）是朝鲜半岛较普遍流行的一项技击术，是一项运用手脚技术进行格斗的韩民族传统的体育项目。它由品势、实战、击破、跆拳舞四部分内容组成。跆拳道是创新与发展起来的一门独特武术，具有较高的自卫及强壮体魄的实用价值。它通过竞赛、品势和功力检测等运动形式，使练习者增强体质，掌握技术，并培养坚韧不拔的意志品质。

      跆拳道是以技击格斗为基础、以修生养性为核心、以调整人的心态、磨练人的意志、培养人的礼仪规范、振奋人的内在精神气质为目的，即正身、正心、正气。跆拳道是一项灵巧型，速度型、智慧型的搏击运动，更是一门“以拳为型，以道为神”的武道文化。

     Taekwondo is one of the most systematic and scientific Korean traditional martial arts, that teaches more than physical fighting skills. It is a discipline that shows ways of enhancing our spirit and life through training our body and mind. 

     Taekwondo can be characterized by unity: the unity of body, mind, and life, and the unity of the pose ["poomsae"] and confrontation, and cracking down. When you do Taekwondo, you should make your mind peaceful and synchronize your mind with your movements, and extend this harmony to your life and society. This is how in Taekwondo the principle of physical movements, the principle of mind training, and the principle of life become one and the same. On the other hand, the right poomsae lead to the right confrontation, which will eventually produce great destructive power. 

     How come we reach such a unity in Taekwondo? Taekwondo is a way of life, much like having a job, raising a family, fighting for a cause, or any one of numerous raison d'etre. What makes Taekwondo different from these is that it is an activity for survival in extremely antagonistic situations. One must always overcome the enemy that is trying to cause harm. But simply winning a fight is not enough to guarantee one's safety, because the enemy may recuperate and attack again. Moreover, there may be many other enemies than the one that was just defeated. One cannot ever feel safe unless one gains permanent peace. To attain this permanent or lasting peace, one needs unity. This is what Taekwondo aim for. Otherwise Taekwondo would be no different from any other street-fighting skills.