Performance Under Pressure

Spot vulnerabilities and exploit them. Free-sparring allows one to learn to spot weaknesses in opponents' defenses, read their next move, detect bad habits, and to interpret telegraphed movements. These are intangible skills that may only be learned from experience. 

No-Contact versus contact. In no-contact sparring, strikes make no contact or light contact with the opponent. It provided the Taekwondo student with a safe learning experience in competition techniques and strategies. Students may spar daily with no problems. In contact sparring, strikes make contact with the opponent. Because of its full contact nature and the risk of injury, students are limited in the amount of sparring they may do over a period of time. In both no-contact and contract sparring, there are limitations on the techniques that may be used and the targets that are available. This helps minimize injuries and allows students to spar more often.