All practising martial artists are students. The Budo South Martial Arts belt system provides a clear distinction between beginner students (junior belts), experienced students (senior belts) and empowered students (black belts). A student’s belt represents their level of proficiency and dedication. The belt colours get darker with the increased proficiency of the student. There are sometimes 8, 10 or 12 ‘Keup’ grades before the ‘Dan’ grades (black belt). Tabs or Stripe grades occur between each major colour belt, and Dan levels between black belt grades.
- Tigers Only (11 years and younger) – Cho Dan Bo. This is a Club-only Black Belt, who wears a Poom Belt in class. In competitions, they will be listed as Keup 1/Grade 1/ Black Tip.
- Every Black Belt Poom-Dan ranked student is registered worldwide with Kukkiwon
The term Keup means Student and Dan means Instructor.
Each belt has its own philosophical meaning:
- White Belt represents purity and innocence of a new student.
- Yellow Belt represents the sun, a fundamental from which growth can occur.
- Green Belt represents further growth of a student and being well rooted in their learning.
- Blue Belt symbolises the sky, reflecting an unlimited capacity for progression and extension.
- Red Belt represents danger, as the student now has responsibility to use their advanced skills appropriately and pass on correct techniques to junior grades.
- Dan Grades (all black belt levels) represent all the colours combined, representing the universe and maturity. The student is fully developed and must now take on responsibility to uphold the martial arts code.
Black belt is not the end of training, it just symbolises the student has mastered the basic techniques and can now take control of their learning.
The Taekwondo belt system is:
Junior Belts
- White (10th Keup)
- White with Yellow Tabs (9th Keup)
- Yellow (8th Keup)
- Yellow with Green Tabs (7th Keup)
- Green (6th Keup)
- Green with Blue Tabs (5th Keup)
Senior Belts
- Blue (4th Keup)
- Blue with Red Tabs (3rd Keup)
- Red (2nd Keup)
- Red with Black Tabs(1st Keup)
Guidelines for Grading through the Dan levels
Grading to 2nd Dan / Poom –
- Aged 13 or older
- Minimum of 1 year after grading to 1st Dan AND
- Having attended 80% of all regular classes (over the previous 12 months) OR
- Having competed for the club in 10 tournaments at a Black Belt level OR
- Taking an active Instructor role within the club OR
- Attaining a National or International Title or representing New Zealand either as an athlete or official
Grading to 3rd Dan / Poom –
- Aged 15 or older
- Minimum of 2 years after grading to 2nd Dan AND
- Having attended 80% of all regular classes (over the previous 2 years) and taking an active Instructor role within the club OR
- Attaining a National Championship OR
- Attaining a International Title OR
- Attained National Referees qualifications and attended 6 tournaments as a Referee/Judge OR
- Representing New Zealand either as an athlete or official
Grading to 4th Dan / Poom –
- Aged 18 or older
- Minimum of 3 years after grading to 3rd Dan AND
- Having attended 80% of all regular classes (over the previous 3 years) and taking an active Instructor role within the club OR
- Attaining a National Championship or International Title or representing New Zealand either as an athlete or official OR
- Holding a Class1 TNZ Referees certificate and wishing to apply to attend a WT International Referees/Judges course
