Grand Master Kwangil Bae was born in Kwangju, South Korea. He began studying Tae Kwon Do at the age of seven. By the age of ten, he earned his 1st Dan Black Belt. He graduated from Dan Kook University in Korea with a B.A. degree in Physical Education, with an emphasis on Tae Kwon Do. While attending Dan Kook University, he was a member of the Dan Kook University Tae Kwon Do Team while participating as a ROTC Tae Kwon Do training instructor. Upon graduation, Grand Master Bae served in the Korean Army Special Unit (equivalent to the U.S. Navy Seals and Green Berets Special Forces). During this time, he worked as a drill officer and continued to work as a Tae Kwon Do instructor simultaneously. After completing his service, he was honorably discharged in 1995, from the military as the First Lieutenant. After immigrating to the United States, Master Bae became a resident Tae Kwon Do Instructor of the Urban Sports Cultural Center in New York City. He was also a resident Tae Kwon Do Instructor for the Unified Korean School (also in New York City). During this time Master Bae performed in numerous Tae Kwon Do demonstrations, some of which have been shown on ESPN.Grand Master Bae emphasizes official Olympic-style Tae kwon do techniques as well as enriching student’s knowledge with history and traditional discipline of the martial arts. He also stresses the need of physical conditioning and flexibility as well as means to achieve better overall health.Currently, Grand Master Bae teaches at Elite Taekwondo Center in Cupertino. He also used his skills to contribute his work space at Novellus Systems, Inc. for the community of Palo Alto.Grand master Bae does not only hold the rank of 9th Dan in Tae Kwon Do and 8th Dan in Hapkido but he is also an active International Certified Referee in both Poomsae and Sparring.Grand Master Bae, is in the work with 9th Dan Hapkido Grand Master Kim to develop this new DVD to showcase the combination of Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido in self-defense skills.