Kung Fu Tai Chi Fall 2018

As you’ll read on page 43, my first Sifu, Grandmaster Kwong Wing Lam, passed away last April. I still haven’t completely processed it because I’ve been so busy since then. He passed about month prior to the Tiger Claw Elite Championships (which you’ll read about starting on page 10) while I was away working on Man at Arms: Art of War (which you’ll read about in the next issue although there’s a small teaser on page 98). I went straight from filming to the tournament to assembling this issue of Kung Fu Tai Chi. When it comes to magazine production, I write this Publisher’s Corner last. It’s only just prior to deadline when the puzzle of an issue comes together and I can see how all the pieces finally fit.…

LAST year, the 25th Anniversary of Kung Fu Tai Chi was celebrated by morphing the 2017 Tiger Claw Elite Championships into the Kung Fu Tai Chi 25th Anniversary Festival. In addition to the Tiger Claw Elite Championships and KUNG FU TAI CHI DAY, we added Grandmasters LIVE! (a command performance from our Cover Masters in San Jose’s historic California Theater), as well as a formal 25th Anniversary Festival Banquet. It was the biggest event that Kung Fu Tai Chi had staged. However, this year’s Tiger Claw Elite Championships were actually bigger. This was mostly due to the 10th Annual Tiger Claw Elite KungFuMagazine.com Championship, which increased its number of competitors. When combined with the other half of the Tiger Claw Elite Championships – the 6th Annual Tiger Claw Elite Taekwondo Championship…

The 10th Annual Tiger Claw Elite KungFuMagazine.com Championship had several major renovations. Most significantly, there was a new External Division dedicated exclusively to Songshan Shaolin – the Kung Fu directly from Shaolin Temple. There are so many Shaolin schools in the San Francisco Bay Area that it just seemed appropriate to accommodate them with their own division. This made for three External Divisions that were held on Saturday: Traditional Kung Fu, Songshan Shaolin, and Modern Wushu. The Internal Divisions and the Showcase Championships were held on Sunday. There were nearly 650 competitors for the 10th Annual Tiger Claw Elite KungFuMagazine.com Championship, more than ever before. The Songshan Shaolin Division (嵩山少林) was exclusively for practitioners of Shaolin Kung Fu as taught at Shaolin Temple on Songshan (Song Mountain) today. This was in…

The 6 Annual Tiger Claw Elite Taekwondo Championship was the largest so far with over 600 competitors. As in previous years, the championship was overseen by Master Kwangil Bae. A native of South Korea, Master Bae began studying Taekwondo at the age of seven. He earned his B.A. degree in Physical Education, with an emphasis on Taekwondo, at Korea’s Dan Kook University, and then served in the Korean Army Special Unit as a drill officer. He immigrated to the United States in 1995 and currently holds the rank of 7th Dan in Taekwondo and 5th Dan in Hapkido. He is also an active International Certified Referee in both Poomsae and Sparring. He owns and operates Palo Alto Martial Arts, in Palo Alto, California (BaeTKD.com). Divisions for 2018 included Open Poomsae, Traditional…

OVERALL EXTERNAL GRAND CHAMPIONS (全能總冠軍) 7-8: Lucas Dong – Elite Kung Fu, Fremont CA MODERN WUSHU 9-10: Audrey Young – Shaolin Shaolin Martial Arts, Cupertino CA SONGSHAN SHAOLIN 11-13: Howard Kam – Elite Kung Fu, Fremont CA MODERN WUSHU 14-17: Braydan Tomizaki – Tomizaki Champions, Concord CA TRADITIONAL KUNG FU 18 & Over: Pan Meng Yang – Shaolin Kungfu Chan Academy LA, Arcadia CA SONGSHAN SHAOLIN TRADITIONAL KUNG FU GRAND CHAMPIONS (傳統) 7-8: Intermediate: Lim Jun Le – Fei Si Fu Kung Fu Academy, San Jose CA 9-10: Advanced Female: Jennifer Liu – Tat Wong Kung Fu Academy, San Francisco CA 11-13: Intermediate: Nikki St Charles – Newbury Park CA Advanced Female: Elena Hung – Lily Lau Eagle Claw, San Francisco CA Advanced Male: Brandon Liu – Tat Wong Kung Fu Academy, San Francisco CA 14-17: Intermediate: Jed Chan – Northern Shaolim Kung…

In 2010, the Year of the Tiger, the Tiger Claw Foundation pledged to support WILDAID in its efforts to preserve wild tigers. The illegal wildlife trade is a multibillion-dollar global industry largely driven by consumer demand in expanding economies. While most wildlife conservation groups focus on scientific studies and anti-poaching efforts, WILDAID works to reduce global consumption of wildlife products and to increase local support for conservation efforts. WILDAID also works with governments and partners to protect fragile marine reserves from illegal fishing and shark finning, to enhance public and political will for anti-poaching efforts, and to reduce climate change impacts. Among its celebrity ambassadors are Sir Richard Branson, Li Bingbing, Jackie Chan, Jay Chou, Leonardo DiCaprio, Harrison Ford, Tony Jaa, Ang Lee, Maggie Q, Yao Ming, Michelle Yeoh, and…