Taekwondo body confers rare award to Monsour

MANILA, Philippines — Former taekwondo champion and now Makati Rep. Monsour del Rosario has achieved a rare distinction when he was recently conferred the 2017 “Award for a Proud Taekwondo” by Kukkiwon, the sport’s governing body.

The award is the highest honor given by Kukkiwon to individuals who have contributed to the development and expansion of taekwondo locally and internationally. Since the award’s creation in 2005, Del Rosario is only the first non-Korean to earn the honor.

“I’m proud to share this honor with my fellow Filipinos. I hope this will inspire them to strive hard and never give up on their dreams,” the Makati solon said. “As one of the pioneers of taekwondo in our country, I’m proud to have helped and seen its development. I thank Kukkiwon for recognizing my contribution to the sport’s growth.”

Del Rosario was chosen to receive the award by a committee of taekwondo grandmasters from hundreds of nominees from 209 countries. Del Rosario was selected mainly due to his bemedalled career, his role in developing and propagating the sport from the grassroots to the national and international levels, his leadership as Philippine Taekwondo Association secretary general, his meritorious service as taekwondo ambassador and his role as a legislator.

During his competitive years, Del Rosario gave the Philippines countless gold, silver and bronze medals in the World and Asian Championships, Asian Games, Southeast Asian Games and Southeast Asian Championships.