HISTORY OF JIN PAL hAPKIDO
In the world of martial arts, there are many different styles and masters. As a tenth degree black belt in Hapkido and trainer of the United States' special forces during the Vietnam War, Grandmaster Kim Jin Pal is among the elite.
The origin of his legendary skill traces back to his early youth. Grandmaster Kim was born on April 2, 1941 in U-Pori Il-Gu(Seu-Chung), South Korea. Growing up during the civil war between North and South Korea, Grandmaster Kim had to resort to fighting to protect himself against the oppression of rampant street gangs. Even though he was ferocious by nature, he wanted to be a more effective fighter and sought training in many different styles of martial arts.
In 1960, he attended the military police academy and upon completing basic training, was assigned to the Department of Defense and sent to Seoul, Korea. There, he began his training in Hapkido with Grandmaster Ji Han Jae, the founder of modern Hapkido. Grandmaster Ji Han Jae was responsible for incorporating various unique kicking techniques to Hapkido.
In 1961, Kim Jin Pal was chosen as a personal bodyguard for South Korean General (and future President) Park Chong Hee after a series of intensive testing including shooting, hand to hand combat and last but not least, good looks.
In 1965, Grandmaster Kim was reassigned to Vietnam as part of the Republic of Korea Criminal Investigation Division. During his time there, he was asked to instruct the bodyguards for the Prime Minister of South Vietnam, Nguyen Cao Ky. Grandmaster Kim became the only foreigner to be allowed to open a martial arts studio in Vietnam. His studio stood six stories high and had over 1000 students.
In 1966, Grandmaster Kim was requested to be in the bodyguard detail for United States President Lyndon B. Johnson’s visit to Korea. When Kim came back to Vietnam, he was asked to teach the American military forces such as the Green Berets, Military Police and the 355th Aviation Company. In 1968 he traveled to Nha Trang and established a martial arts class for the U.S. Air Force station.
In 1971 Grandmaster Kim left his studio in Saigon and opened the Flying Tiger Hapkido Studio in Hong Kong, the largest martial arts studio in the city. In 1973, after appearing in Hong Kong Television, he was cast as the leading man in his first martial arts movie "Tiger". With it's tremendous success all over Southeast Asia, he became the star in seven other movies: "The Mandarin", "Black Guide", "Valley of the Double Dragon", "Jet-do Karate", "Code Name Panther", "Dae Ha Drama" and "Evidence".
During this time, many major studio stars and stuntmen practiced at his martial arts studio, including Jackie Chan. Grandmaster Kim was also invited to give a seminar to the Singapore Police Academy and even taught the Crown Prince of Bahrain and his bodyguards the art of Hapkido.
1982 Grandmaster Kim moved to the United States and settled in Southern California with the intention of expanding Hapkido to the western world. For the next ten years, he established a Hapkido class at El Toro Marine base, taught the Irvine SWAT team and was elected as the president of the World United Martial Arts Federation in 1987.
In 1993, with the intention of incorporating Hapkido to the security forces of the United States, Grandmaster Kim relocated to Washington DC. There, he instructed US DEA agents and the DEA's Chief of Operations Management. He also taught the George Washington University Men's Basketball team, opened a Hapkido class in the White House Athletic Center and trained 1988 Boxing Olympic Gold Medallist, Andrew Maynard.
Several years later, he moved his studio to Rockville, Maryland. He successfully trained Washington Redskins Linebacker Ken Harvey to attain a black belt in Hapkido. Together, with the help of his son Master Eric Kim, they built a strong and thriving martial arts studio.
With his talent and kind heart, Grandmaster Kim has produced many high quality masters and instructors. There are now Hapkido studios and thousands of students all over the world that are under the Jin Pal Hapkido Federation banner.