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North East Wing Chun Student Association A private, non-commercial training group, dedicated to the practice and preservation of Wing Chun in the tradition of Yip Man,Leung Sheung and Kenneth Chung. [email protected] , Phone: (888) 587-7732 More Home About Us Contact Us Classes Calendar FAQs News Photos Forums Links Articles and Essays Videos Members Books \n ","_id":"5964ed524bde5b0001118e45","_captchaPublicKey":"6Le3aDEUAAAAAMNRsdkVVxpJA05exOZVTuLEqM5u","_renderCaptcha":true,"_site":{"id":91755890}}, container: $('#webs-bin-5964ed524bde5b0001118e45 .webs-bin-wrap .webs-container')}).done(function(m){ m.oneLoaded(); deferredLoad.resolve(); }); }); }); Lineage: Yip Man -> Leung Sheung -> Kenneth Chung -> North East Wing Chun Yip Man (1893 - 1972) Yip Man (葉問) [October 1893 - December 2, 1972] was the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun openly. He had several students who later became martial arts teachers in their own right, including Leung Sheung, Lok Yiu, Chu Shong Tin, Wong Shun Leung and Bruce Lee. Yip Man was the last Wing Chun student of Chan Wah-shun when he was 70 years old. Yip Man was thirteen years old he started learning Wing Chun from Chan Wah-shun (陳華順). Because of his sifu's old age, Yip Man had to learn much of his skills and techniques from his master's second eldest disciple Ng Chung-sok (吳仲素). Three years into Yip Man’s training Chan Wah-shun died. One of his dying wishes was to have Ng continue training Yip. At the age of 15 Yip man moved to Hong Kong. At age sixteen, Yip Man attended school at St. Stephen's College in Hong Kong. It was a secondary school for wealthy families and foreigners who lived in Hong Kong. According to Yip Man's two sons, while at St. Stephen's Yip Man met an old man who was his master's elder fellow-disciple (and so, by Chinese tradition Yip Man's martial uncle), Leung Bik (梁璧), son of his master's master Leung Jan (梁贊). After that encounter, Yip Man continued his training lessons from Leung Bik. By the age of 24, Yip Man had returned to Foshan, his Wing Chun skills tremendously improved. In Foshan, Yip Man became a policeman. At the end of 1949, after the Communist party won the Chinese civil war, being an officer of the Kuomintang, he decided to escape to Hong Kong without his family when the Communists had come to Foshan. In Hong Kong, he opened a martial arts school. Initially, business was poor because his students typically stayed for only a couple of months. He moved his school twice, to Hoi Tan Street (海壇街) in Sham Shui Po, and then to Lee Tat Street (利達街) in Yau Ma Tei. By then, some of his students were skilled enough that they were able to start their own schools. Among the first were Leung Sheung, Lok Yiu, and Chu Shong-tin. In 1967, Yip Man and some of his students established the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association (香港詠春拳體育會). In 1972, Yip Man suffered throat cancer and subsequently died on the 2nd of December that same year. Within the three decades of his career in Hong Kong, he established a training system for Wing Chun that eventually spread across the world. Copyright 2009 Worldwide Leung Sheung Lineage Association All rights reserved. Leung Sheng (1918 - 1978) Wing Chun Master Leung Sheung was a native of the City of Ah Yiu, Nan Hoi County, Guangdong Province. Leung Sheung firmly believed in the importance of building up one's body in support of the country's strength, and demonstrated gallantry and martial prowess even in his youth. Leung Sheung immersed himself in traditional Chinese martial arts, learning numerous styles including White Eye-Brow, Choi Lee Fut, Dragon Style and Wing Chun. He studied under many well known teachers such as Yip Gun, Lee Yit, Teng Shui, Wong Cheong and Yip Man. Throughout his lifetime, he relentlessly promoted the value of the arts and enthusiastically encouraged others to practice them. Despite Leung Sheung's deep devotion to the martial arts, his employment occasionally required him to relocate. Thus, in his early days, he was unable to consistently learn from any one teacher. Leung Sheung was nonetheless persistent and successful in finding ways to learn from local teachers and friends, wherever his work took him, Leung Sheung was elected as the first General Secretary of the Hong Kong Restaurant Workers' Union. He was skillful in public relations, and the newly formed association quickly expanded under his leadership. There was a Martial Arts branch of the Hong Kong Restaurant Workers Union. During this time, there was an open teaching position within that department. The union members agreed that Leung Sheung was strongly qualified, and almost unanimously urged him to accept the teaching position. Despite their appeal, Leung Sheung was eager to seek someone more qualified. When Yip Man arrived in Hong Kong, a mutual friend named Lee Man introduced him to Leung Sheung. Being greatly impressed by Yip Man's Wing Chun skills, Leung Sheung urged him to accept the teaching position. Leung Sheung then relinquished all his previous martial arts training to study seriously under Yip Man. It was therefore under Yip Man's guidance that Leung Sheung perfected his Wing Chun arts. Leung Sheung and others were very supportive of Yip Man, and encouraged him to teach the arts publicly. This is how Wing Chun was established in Hong Kong in the 1950's, and developed to its present worldwide popularity. Leung Sheung is worthy of note among history's famous instructors. He was widely acknowledged for his achievement and high skill in Wing Chun. Leung Sheung was further praised for his innovative experimentation, enabled by virtue of his prior training and experience, and a firm belief that only practical application can verify theory. His persistent and patient teaching process molded many skillful students. In those days, it was often said that one learning from Leung Sheung was certain to develop good skill in sticking hands (chi sau). Such compliments further demonstrated confidence in Leung Sheung's ability and excellence in passing down the arts. Leung Sheung passed away many years ago. Despite only limited historical materials and stories, Leung Sheung’s spirit has nonetheless continued to pass down the arts. Leung Sheung's contributions were instrumental in Wing Chun's worldwide growth, and the art's continuing growth for generations to come. Copyright 2009 Worldwide Leung Sheung Lineage Association All rights reserved. Kenneth Chung In 1964, Kenneth Chung changed high schools that brought him into contact with a new set of friends, one being Ivan Lee. As high school teenagers often do, a group composed of Ivan Lee, Kenneth Chung, and some other friends went out on a camp out. While fooling around with one another, they noticed that Ivan Lee was a superior fighter, and was doing something different. Naturally, they asked what it was that he was doing. He told them that he was using Wing Chun. Ivan Lee was learning Wing Chun from Yip Man. In addition, many of Ivan's friends were students of Lok Yiu, Yip Man's number two student. Yip Man was the obvious person to teach them Wing Chun. Ivan dissuaded his friends from going to Yip Man because they were still just kids. As kids, they were far too young for any in depth attention from Yip Man. Yip Man touched hands with the current young men in the school rarely. When he did, these young men often claimed to never wash the spot. Historically, Yip Man's first crop of students began to start teaching in 1956. From 1960 to 1964, Yip Man became very famous, and Wing Chun was experiencing great popularity. As such, Yip Man's time to devote to "youngsters" was extremely limited, unless they had lots of money, or were troublemakers, which would obviously draw a teacher's attention. They continued to press Ivan to let them learn Wing Chun, however. Ivan directed Ken and his friends to Winston Wan. So, in 1964, Ken and two of his buddies started learning Wing Chun from Winsto...