While tae kwon-do is a serious martial arts, it is also fun, students say. At a recent tournament one student decided to bring her appropriately dressed doll ringside for good luck.

Here are some facts about tae kwon-do:

Started in Korea in the 6th century, tae kwon-do was a fighting technique that also was considered an important subject of learning.The martial art was started by a kingdom to protect itself from its more powerful neighbors. The warrior corps trained themselves in different forms of hand and foot fighting, while also practicing mental and physical discipline.The name tae kwon-do was chosen for the martial art in 1955 by a board of instructors, historians and other prominent people because of its description of the sport: tae (foot), kwon (fist), do (art).

• White ——— –Signifies innocence, as that of a beginning student who has no previous knowledge of tae kwon-do• Yellow — Signifies Earth, from which a plant sprouts and takes root as the tae kwon-do foundation is being laid• Green — Signifies the plant's growth as the tae kwon-do skill begins to develop• Blue — Signifies the Heaven, toward which the plant matures into a towering tree as training in tae kwon-do progresses• Red — Signifies danger, cautioning the student to exercise control and warning the opponent to stay away• Black — Opposite of white, therefore, signifying the maturity and proficiency in tae kwon-do. Also indicates the wearer's imperviousness to darkness and fear.

• Patterns — A choreographed routine of martial arts techniques which resemble real combat. In competitions, routines are judged on energy, precision, speed and control.• Sparring — A type of training through free-form fighting. In competitions, students may participate in point-sparring where the action is stopped at each perceived point, or continuous sparring where each judge tallies the points as the fight continues for a specified time.• Breaking — An event in which the competitor breaks one or more objects with a hand or foot. In competition, technique and difficulty are weighted.• Weapons — Students demonstrate their proficiency with the weapon by performing a pattern. Energy, precision, speed and control are again weighed.