"My Instructor Doesn't Hit Me"... Taekwondo Instructor Assaulted Without Reason in Front of Children

"Drunken Attacker Commits 'Random Assault' in Front of Children"
"Parents and Police Officers Praised 'Well Done'... Severe Trauma Resulted"
Netizens Support: "It Must Have Been Hard, But You Handled It Well in Front of the Kids"

A, the head of the Taekwondo team, released a dashcam video showing a random assault. Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] A Taekwondo master in Busan has sparked controversy by claiming that he was randomly assaulted by a drunken passerby in front of his students.

On the 30th, an online community called 'Bobae Dream' posted an article titled "I am a Taekwondo master running a dojang. I was randomly assaulted in front of the children."

A, who identified himself as a Taekwondo master, said that around 4:10 p.m. the previous day, he was randomly assaulted by a man near a vehicle parked in front of the Taekwondo dojang building and shared a dashcam video capturing the incident.

According to A, right after finishing the Taekwondo class, as he was putting the children into the vehicle to take them home and sitting in the driver's seat, a man approached, pointing his finger and asking, "Are you the teacher? The master?" before hitting A on the back of the head with a fist.

Surprised and wondering "What is going on?", A immediately got out of the car, closed the driver's door, and pushed the man away to defend himself, worried that the man might also threaten the children. When A asked, "Who are you to hit me?" and "Do you know me?", the man, growing more agitated, focused his assault on A's face.

The video A released shows a man dressed in black repeatedly punching A's face, while A appears to be trying to restrain the man by holding onto him.

After being hit in the face several times, A said, "I thought, so this is what a random assault is," and explained, "After being hit about 7 to 8 times mainly on my face, I felt that if I got hit any more, it would be serious, so I just defended myself as much as possible."

He added, "I also momentarily lost my composure and tried to attack him, but since I was in front of the children and neighborhood residents, I thought a Taekwondo master shouldn't hit someone. Although I was angry, I bit my lip and endured it." He further stated, "If he had tried to harm the children in the vehicle, I wouldn't have just stood there."

A reported the incident to the police, who arrived at the scene and resolved the matter. The man who committed the random assault reportedly said to the police, "Did I hit you?" A then calmed the frightened children and sent them home.

As a result of the assault, A suffered bruises on his face and a torn inside of his mouth. He said, "This incident caused serious trauma. The children who witnessed it are also anxious. It breaks my heart to think of the children who usually trust and follow me, crying and asking, 'Why doesn't our master hit back?'"

He continued, "Many parents who heard about the incident expressed great concern. After thoroughly explaining the situation to the parents, I received a lot of support and messages saying 'You did well,' which gave me great strength." However, A confessed, "Eating dinner alone, the scenes of being hit kept replaying in my mind, and I cried. I wonder why I couldn't fight back, and whether enduring it was the right thing to do. I feel unfair and very distressed."

On the day of the incident, during a phone call with the investigating officer, A was told, "You kept your composure and endured well in front of the children. As a master, you did the right thing." The officer reportedly said that if A had also assaulted the man, the situation could have escalated.

A said, "I asked if the attacker held any grudge against me or the children, but he said no. The attacker is also a father, was intoxicated, and happened to pass by. He said he assaulted me because he didn't like the process of putting the children into the vehicle."

Netizens have expressed sincere encouragement, saying things like, "You endured well," "It must have been hard, but you handled it well in front of the children," and "If you had fought back, there would have been all sorts of criticism. One kick would have ended it, but you were humiliated instead."

One netizen commented, "If you had fought back and used violence, you might feel relief now but regret later, and the students who saw it would have been even more shocked. You really handled it well. Amazing."

Another netizen comforted, "Just because the Taekwondo master didn't retaliate doesn't mean ordinary people think he's a fool. I hope you don't suffer too much trauma."

Meanwhile, according to A, the man who assaulted him was booked by the police, investigated, and then released. A is scheduled to submit a statement at the police station on the afternoon of the 30th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.