MASTKD and the University of Flores Sign a Strategic Agreement Linking Taekwondo with Higher Education

MASTKD ESPAÑOL

The agreement was signed by Dr. Analía Verónica Losada, UFLO’s Vice Rector for Teaching and Research, and by Claudio Antonio Aranda, MASTKD’s CEO, establishing a partnership focused on the academic, scientific, and professional development of martial arts and combat sports.

A partnership that transcends institutional boundaries

The University of Flores, headquartered in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires and with a presence in various regions of the country, has established an academic profile focused on the social sciences, health, and sports, with a contemporary approach to professional training.

In this context, the partnership with MASTKD—a global platform specialized in Taekwondo with over 20 years of experience—adds an international dimension that extends the project’s reach beyond the Argentine university system.

This is not merely a cooperation agreement, but a convergence of academia, sports, and communication with global reach.

From Argentina to the World: Education with Global Reach

Far from a local focus, the agreement is structured around a clear objective: to project education from Argentina to the world.

The first concrete step will be the international expansion of the University Technical Degree in Martial Arts, an undergraduate program that includes Olympic Taekwondo as one of its core components.

Through MASTKD’s digital infrastructure and global reach, the initiative will seek to transcend borders, enabling coaches, athletes, and professionals from different countries to access structured university-level training supported by the virtual learning platform offered by UFLO.

The model combines three key elements: academic knowledge, high-performance experience, and global distribution capacity.

At this intersection lies a central concept: it is not just about teaching Taekwondo, but about exporting education.

Academia and high performance: a shared vision

The signing of the agreement brought together academic leaders and prominent figures from Argentine sports:

• Dr. Analía Verónica Losada — Vice Rector for Teaching and Research at UFLO
• Dr. Marcelo Salas — Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences
• Julieta Gomez Zeliz, M.A. — Academic Secretary, Buenos Aires Campus
• Carolina Mariani, M.A. — Director of the University Technical Program in Martial Arts and Combat Sports
• Claudio Antonio Aranda — CEO of MASTKD
• Gabriel Taraburelli — Technical Director of the Argentine Taekwondo Confederation

Carolina Mariani’s presence also lent the agreement strong symbolic and sporting significance. A historic figure in Argentine judo, Mariani served as Argentina’s Olympic flag bearer in Atlanta in 1996 and represented the country in three consecutive Olympic Games. She also won a world championship medal in Chiba in 1995 and multiple Pan American medals, becoming one of the great pioneers of Argentine Olympic martial arts.

Currently, Mariani is leading an academic initiative that seeks to unite martial tradition, scientific knowledge, and university education applied to contemporary sports.

For his part, Gabriel Taraburelli—an Olympian in Sydney 2000 as an athlete and in London 2012, Tokyo 2020, and Paris 2024 as a coach—strengthens the connection between the university system and high performance, an essential component of modern sports development models.

A cooperation model with international reach

The agreement establishes a general framework that will enable the development of specific initiatives through complementary agreements, including academic projects, applied research, and training programs.

For international audiences, this type of initiative reflects a growing trend: the incorporation of disciplines such as martial arts into university structures capable of professionalizing their teaching and generating knowledge.

A Shift in Scale

For MASTKD, the agreement represents a strategic evolution.

After more than two decades of analyzing the global Taekwondo ecosystem, the organization is beginning to play an active role in generating and promoting knowledge.

For UFLO, it means opening a concrete path to internationalization in a field with high potential for development.

Together, both institutions are establishing a starting point that transcends the institutional level and points toward a greater goal: to consolidate Taekwondo as a discipline with an academic foundation, professional prospects, and global reach.

About The Author