Master Louis Thursh began studying martial arts at the age of 17. The first style he was introduced to was an eclectic style composed mainly of Kung Fu, Tae Kwon Do, and Jeet Kun Do. This style also had many weapon forms including sai, nunchakus, staff and sword. After many years Master Thursh decided to practice a pure form and found the kicking techniques of Tae Kwon Do to be very appealing. Master Thursh began studying with a master of Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido in the early 80's and has been practicing and progressing ever since. Master Thursh has been teaching Tae Kwon Do for going on 20 years, the last 15 of those years in his own academy. He currently holds a seventh degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do with equal experience in Hapkido. Additionally he has a significant background in the Chinese art of Chin Na (the art of catching and locking) training with the guidance of Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming.

The certifying authority for White Tiger Tae Kwon Do is Grandmaster Joong S. Chung. He began studying Tae Kwon Do at the age of 13, and has been teaching since 1968. He holds a ninth degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and also holds a 9th degree black belt in Hapkido (A Korean Self-defense), and a 6th degree black belt in Judo (a throwing and grappling art from Japan). He is a world leader in Moo Duk Kwon style of Tae Kwon Do. This is a style that focuses mostly on using your body to produce the most strength possible. It is used mostly for self-defense and not tournament sparring, which uses much weaker kicks just to score points. The Grandmaster's background includes being the assistant to a three-star General in the Marines, Military Police Chief of Seoul, and a bodyguard for General William Westmoreland. With this type of background it is no wonder that Grandmaster Chung focuses mostly on the traditional self-defense aspect of the martial arts and not the competition. He even feels that in some ways competition training conflicts with the true meaning of Tae Kwon Do. He lists competition at the bottom of the list of beliefs - including courtesy, integrity, perseverance and self-control.