k. h. rhee was born on 20 march 1938 in seoul, korea. his martial arts training began when he was around 7 or 8 years of age, learning judo from his father. he later learned karate from one of his schoolteachers. when rhee served in the south korean military forces, he came into contact with h. h. choi and learned taekwondo in the 35th infantry division. from february 1964, he taught taekwondo to royal air force personnel in singapore. he emigrated to london on 2 july 1967. he attained the rank of 8th "dan" in 1981, and was promoted to 9th "dan" by h. h. choi on 1 july 1997 in saint petersburg, russia. rhee came to be known as the father of british taekwondo, as well as the father of irish taekwondo. he is now based in glasgow.