Seung O. Choi
January 12, 2005
Grandmaster Seung Ook Choi passed away on Wednesday, January 12, 2005. The founder of Choi Shin Do, a practical and progressive system of self-defense, Master Choi is an important member of the Maine community and the international martial arts world.Master Choi was born in South Korea in 1947. The son of Won Wha Choi and Soon Ja Le, both of his parents came from prominent families of provincial governors. His childhood was marked by difficulty and privation caused by the Korean War. His mother died of typhoid fever when he was four years old; his father was interned as a POW in North Korea. He overcame many hardships to become a world-renowned fighter and martial arts instructor.Having earned a full scholarship, Master Choi was educated at Kyung Hee College, Korea's prestigious national sports academy. He played on the national soccer team and was a champion full-contact fighter, winning the Korean National Tae Kwon Do championship four years in a row and reigning as the All-Asian kick-boxing champion from 1969 to 1972. He had a distinguished government career as a trainer of Korean Army Special Forces and instructor to the personal bodyguards of the Korean President. Master Choi's greatest accomplishments were as a teacher--of the physical aspects of self-defense as well as practical philosophy and ethics. He passed on lessons from his own life, teaching students the discipline to turn adversity into success. An expert in a variety of Asian martial arts and weapons, he was recruited to serve as master instructor to the Maine Karate Association and invited to the United States in 1976. Two years later, he opened his landmark school on Congress Street in Portland. In 2000, he renamed the school and moved the Choi Institute of Martial Arts and Sciences to new, state-of-the-art facilities on Veranda Street. In his career as a martial arts instructor, he trained champions in Tae Kwon Do, boxing, kickboxing, grappling, and vale tudo. His accomplishments as an educator were honored with the 2000 Maine Governor's Council on Fitness and Sports Award and the 2004 Jefferson Award for community service in education and literacy.He is survived by his two children, Yoon and Won; his sister, Nam Sook Choi; and his fiancee, Sandra Michaud of Springvale.A funeral mass will be held at St. Patrick's Church in Portland on Saturday, January 22 at 11:00 AM. Arrangements are through the Lafrance-Lambert & Black Funeral Home, 29 Winter Street, Sanford. Donations on behalf of Master Choi may be made to the American Cancer Society, 1 Main Street Suite 160B, Topsham, ME 04086.
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I first met Master Choi about 1978 at Maine Karate Association. I was about 16 at the time. He was a great martial artist, or course, and also a really friendly and likable person. He laughed a lot about learning to speak English, practicing with his students while teaching us martial arts. I trained with Master Choi for 3 or 4 years until my girlfriend fell and broke her nose while doing a spinning back kick in her stocking feet. (We were supposed to be barefoot when we practiced.)
Anyway, I didn’t see Master Choi very often after that, but whenever I did he remembered me and always mentioned my girlfriend breaking her nose. He was a big influence, an excellent teacher and a terrific guy. My sincere condolences to his family and friends on their loss.
– Gil Doughty