A beautiful summer evening lured thousands of spectators to the forecourt of the landmark Hotel de Ville – Paris’ city hall since the 14th century – well before the Demo Team began their warm-up. Once the show got started, the crowd swelled further, as more and more spectators flooded in to view the spectacle.

That got underway with classic poomsae moves set to classical music. Then came the signature moves: A series of spinning, screaming aerial kick breaks. Those had the audience shrieking and the photographers diving for cover, as splinters from smashed boards rained down.

The tempo soared with creative poomsae and more breaks set to the beats of drumming, electronic music and rock. The show ended with a homage to the host city: Team members billowed fabrics dyed red, white and blue – the colours of the French flag – and unfurled an Eiffel Tower banner.  

Finally, WT President Chungwon Choue and French Taekwondo legend Pascal Gentil mounted the stage to thank the team.