Talon TKD – Who We Are

Talon TKD run Taekwondo and self-defence classes in Guildford for ages 10+. Talon TKD focuses on the practical aspects of Taekwondo and its utilisation in the real world, as well as developing fitness and helping students grow in confidence.

Talon TKD was born during the COVID-19 pandemic. The founding members, Ed Bowen and Louise Smith, were originally trained by Bytomic TKD, bringing years of knowledge and experience to classes. To this day, Talon TKD and Bytomic TKD have a close relationship, and occasionally overlap for tournaments and gradings.

The name “Talon” represents the temperament, abilities, and characteristics of birds of prey; in particular, eagles, which are prominent and celebrated figures in Korean culture. Korea, Taekwondo’s country of origin, is home to a variety of birds of prey, which are often depicted on logos of sports teams and military insignias. The most famous example of this is the Korean Black Eagles aerial display team, which are the equivalent of the Red Arrows in the UK.

Eagles are powerful and gracious birds that can hold their own in the animal kingdom. They are no easy target, nor are they overly aggressive, and will only attack if absolutely necessary. We can learn a lot from how these birds of prey behave in the way that they glide silently and peacefully through the air and then swiftly accelerate when they need to. This is similar to the way that we need to conserve our energy and maximise efficiency in our Taekwondo techniques with precision, timing and power.

Eagles are at the top of the food chain and inspire us to be our best and work hard to achieve our goals. Whilst no one is perfect, we can use their example to strive for greatness and push beyond our limits.