MADEC News Issue 3
WU SHU KWAN
CHINESE BOXING
BREAKS TWO WORLD RECORDS

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Tel: 08707 700461

Fax: 08707 700462

 

Wu Shu Kwan is unique in holding two martial art World Records at the same time.
Senior Master Instructress, Trish Chang broke the World Record for chopping wooden blocks by breaking 185 in two minutes. The challenge was shown on London Weekend Television’s Guinness World Records.

 

 
Senior Master Paul Ingleton holds the World Record for the highest kick, reaching the height of 8 feet 9 inches (2.667 metres).
Both records can be found on page 272 of the Guinness World Records 2000 (Millennium edition)
Wu Shu Kwan, Chinese Boxing Centre Tel: 020 7229 6354
 
MARTIAL ARTS FOR A NEW MILLENNIUM
AN ARTICLE ON BEHALF OF THE SIMON LAU CENTRE
Here we are in the last year of the old and at the dawn of a new millennium; the natural time to reflect on the past, and consider the future. It is a time to consider where we have come from, and where we are going. As with many others, it remains the ongoing wish of everyone at the Simon Lau Centre to see the good name of the Martial Arts restored. But before we can do this, we must consider not what society can offer us, but what we can offer society.
We know that Master Lau is not alone in feeling that the image of the Martial Arts has suffered in recent years. The late 20th Century certainly won't be remembered as a high point in their development. Currently it is not a particularly well-respected profession and there remains a serious lack of quality control over instructors. Styles come and go according to the dictates of fashion, and the public remains badly misinformed by the media, movies, and magazines. So much so, that many end up missing the point of Martial Arts training entirely. But the public isn’t to blame. The responsibility lies with the people they pay to teach them. Therefore it is essential that all instructors are well trained and well educated before they teach. Anyone can sell techniques. We need to aim higher with our teaching and try to inspire our students to be all they can be. Sell techniques, and sooner or later we will run out of things to sell.
Equally important, we have get across that there is much more to the Martial Arts than fighting. Why would anyone want to teach fighting anyway? Let us not have any illusions. A true street fighting style would include how to 'glass' someone and show the best way to smash a head against a paving slab. There has to be more to the Martial Arts than beating people up. It doesn't take ten years of blood, sweat and tears in a training hall to smash someone's face in. A thug with a baseball bat will do the job even better without any training at all. To see real violence is to see human beings at their worst. Just consider some of the things the human brain is capable of, like putting a man on the moon, writing music, and transplanting a human heart. It is truly a tragedy to see the incredible potential of the human mind reduced to the level of physical violence. It may be a part of life but it is nothing to seek out or aspire to.
It may also be true that most people take up a Martial Art with the intention of learning how to fight. However it's our duty to see that, over time, they recognize the opportunity to learn far more valuable things; such as personal development. Unlike many other physical activities, the Martial Arts have much to offer in terms of both physical and mental development. Students learn how to make themselves stronger and more skilful as well as combat fear. Fear is the underlying cause of all violence and learning to conquer it is one of life's most liberating and rewarding achievements. It goes further than just building confidence. It allows us to live our lives free from intimidation and humiliation. It is a truly life enriching goal and clearly one which is beyond the scope of your average gym or aerobics class.
The dedicated Martial Artist soon learns that mastering himself is in fact much tougher and more rewarding than mastering others. This is the challenge of discipline. Not only is it necessary to reach a high level of ability, but discipline also leads to respect. Self-respect, because discipline means you did not let yourself down and respect from others because discipline is not easy. Fundamentally, everyone wants to be respected, so to be respected is to be happier. Part of discipline is also about taking responsibility for our actions. This includes both the actions we choose to do and those we choose not to. It requires an understanding and awareness of the causes and effects of our actions, which in turn requires that we do not allow ourselves to be in denial, or to be self-indulgent.
Your discipline is also the measure of your self-worth. It introduces the practitioner to fundamental human principles such as dignity and integrity. Once these concepts have been grasped the practitioner is no longer interested in 'proving' himself on the street. This is how traditional Martial Arts can actually make people less violent and it is something of which we should all be very proud. It is a message we need to get across loud and clear.
This is not to say that Martial Arts are ineffective on the street. Certainly a practitioner's training can be useful in many situations, but to concentrate on fighting is to miss out on the greater things a traditional Martial Art has to offer. To Master Lau the Martial Arts touch on many subjects and philosophies that are deeply rooted within the Chinese culture. For example, he points out that pain and suffering are, in fact, the teachers of the true meaning of love and compassion. A person with no experience of either cannot have compassion or love for another. The word 'suffering' has no meaning for him. By introducing concepts such as love and compassion the Martial Arts can actually teach us the true value of life. In Master Lau's own words:
"Whatever you do, don't shut off your pain. Protection from pain doesn't work and when we try to defend ourselves from suffering, we only suffer more. The protected heart, innocent and secure that is never exposed to loss, cannot know tenderness. Only the won back heart can ever be satisfied."
At the Simon Lau Centre we firmly believe in the value of learning a traditional martial art. Some seem to think that they are too old to be relevant to today's society. Again, this is a symptom of judging them as purely fighting oriented activities. Certainly the traditional Martial Arts are nothing new. But they were the product of far more violent and lawless times than our own. The techniques that have survived have done so because they were worth holding on to. Even a relatively recent style like Wing Chun Kuen has over three hundred years of development behind it. If we can't get a technique to work we are often too quick to blame the technique. The truth is many techniques don't work until we have developed the necessary strength, speed and skill. So, in fact, few of the people who knock traditional techniques are qualified to do so. Besides this, tradition is about respecting your past. Tradition formalizes this respect through rituals and part of this respect involves passing on what we have been privileged to learn.
One tradition that is rarely taught in the UK is that of the Martial Arts as a form of celebration. While many know that the flamboyant Chinese Lion Dances are performed by the local Martial Artists, few know what they are celebrating. A Martial Art is traditionally a celebration of health and wealth. Health because you need to be healthy to be able to do it and wealth because, as with nowadays, learning a Martial Art costs money. Traditionally you would pay a Master to teach your child about life. It was always much more than learning self-defence. Students learned about giving and receiving healing, and were taught to be confident, dignified and respected. They were given the wisdom of an understanding of life. This is also connected to the Chinese notion of wealth, which goes further that having lots of money. Wealth is related to happiness and fortune (as in 'luck'). So the Master would also teach how to search for happiness in life. This included how to attract the right people during your life journey. The influence from the wrong sort of people can get us into trouble and make our journey difficult. Equally, a person would be considered 'fortunate' if he prospers from meeting the right people at the right time.
One thing that must improve in the new Millennium is the level of professionalism within Martial Arts teaching. One day the public will insist on better qualified, better educated instructors, but why not beat them to it? At the Simon Lau Centre the process of becoming an instructor involves more than just Martial Arts training. All potential instructors are handpicked by Master Lau, before undergoing a 12 week internal instructor course. Each student has to produce a written paper on each of the topics covered in the course and is assessed according to the quality and punctuality of this work. The next phase involves putting the theory into practice. Each of the students has to prepare a speech on one of the topics and then present it to the other students. In addition, each student has undergo the task of taking a beginner's class under Master Lau's watchful eye. After that, everyone must complete a national teaching diploma from the National College for Further Education (NCFE). This recognises that teaching is an entirely different skill to Martial Arts and so, appropriately, it's related to teaching and coaching in general, as opposed to Martial Arts in particular. The last requirement is that all instructors carry an up-to-date first aid certificate. Only then are candidates considered ready to teach. For us, there is no other way to do it. If we are taking people's money we have to offer them a quality product. Otherwise, they will rightly go somewhere else. Given the nature of the subject we are teaching, well-educated, responsible instructors should be the norm not the exception.
The challenge all our instructors face is that of inspiring their students. There are three key requirements before this is possible and Martial Arts teachers need all three. The first is to be inspired yourself. If you don't find the subject fascinating and rewarding, your students never will. The second is to lead by example. People are inspired by seeing people do things they cannot do. In other words our skill has to amaze our students. Like it or not, we are the standard by which our styles are judged. Therefore we have to accept the responsibility of maintaining a high level of skill through our personal training. Becoming a teacher is no time to ease off with our own training. The third key to inspiring students is in having a deep and secure knowledge of the subject. Tell someone to brush their teeth twice a day and they won't do it. Explain why they should do it and get them to understand the benefit of doing so and they will. We need to explain the benefits of what we are doing and what our students will gain from it. This way will inspire them towards self-discipline; which means they aren't training to please their teacher or to punish themselves. They are doing it for their own personal development. They understand what they do, enjoy what they do and are respected for it.
Master Lau continues to be an outstanding ambassador for the Martial Arts and the Chinese culture. He has always demanded the highest standards of himself and will continue to do the same for his organisation. It is pride such as this that helps maintain such high standards. Dedicated Martial Artists have much to be proud of. Integrity, respect and discipline lie at the heart of a traditional martial art and these are qualities that many people feel are badly needed in today's society. In light of this, rather than becoming out of date as we go into the new Millennium, traditional Martial Arts have never been more relevant.
The Simon Lau Centre can be contacted on
020 7581 1118
 
MARTIAL ARTS FOR THE DISABLED
BY
BARRY MITCHELL
It was by chance that 1991 necessitated a change in venue for my Dojo and we started using the facilities at, what was known then, as the Mike Heaffey Sports Centre and is now the Aspire National Training Centre (Aspire – Association for Spinal Injuries Research and Rehabilitation – a registered charity). The Centre, designed by Sir Norman Foster and officially opened by Princess Diana, is located on the grounds of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, North London and is, I believe, the largest sports centre in Europe, dedicated to integrated sports for both the able bodied and the disabled.
It was some four years later that I was approached by the Aspire management, asking if I had ever considered teaching martial arts to the disabled. The truth is – I hadn’t. It had never entered my mind. I said I would think about it but I admit now, I had grave misgivings. Could ‘they’ do it? Was I capable of teaching them? Would it be acceptable to my Sensei? What about gradings? Every question spawned more questions. And so, for a year, I thought about it.
In 1992 the Centre organised a day’s coaching session on coaching the disabled and they said that, to help me make up my mind, they would sponsor me to attend. The main thing that I learned was that there was nothing special to learn. Nothing to fear, except fear alone. Just use common sense and teach as you ordinarily would. What finally convinced me was reading a book that was loaned to me by the centre, about Karate training for the disabled. I don’t easily get annoyed but this book was so disgusting and so angered me that I thought if that is the best that is around, then I have an obligation to teach martial arts to the disabled.
I thought, very carefully, about how I would teach the art and gave myself some ground rules, which were modified as I gained more experience:
Do not change anything that does not need to be changed
Make the karate work for the individual
If changes or variations need to be introduced, try to keep to the spirit and the rhythm of the original
Of course I made mistakes but we are all learning and my students were gentle with me and were very forgiving. I am sometimes asked how many disabled students I have and my answer is always the same. I have students, some of whom are disabled. The reality is that, as far as I am concerned, anybody that comes to me for the first time is disabled and the only difference between the disabled and the so called able-bodied is the degree of the disability.
Everybody that trains at our Dojo has benefited from being involved with fully integrated karate classes. We have learned to be inclusive and not exclusive. I am always amazed at the number of so called instructors who have such blinkered vision. If you can kick and punch and block like this you’re in. If you can’t kick like this, maybe because you’re in a wheelchair or you can’t punch with full power because you only have one arm, you’ll never be in. What nonsense! If a person trains hard to perfect their skills, studies to increase their knowledge, learns humility and respects their fellow man, then isn’t such a person equally deserving of the coveted black belt?
Our children also benefit. A few months ago I paid an unexpected visit to a class and entered the Dojo just as the instruction went out to ‘pair up’. As usual people partnered who ever they were the closest to and my heart was filled with joy when I observed able-bodied children pair up with disabled children without giving it a moment’s thought. I am proud to say that we are educating a generation of children who have no fear of the disabled, who know no embarrassment about talking to the disabled or training with the disabled and see it all as being very ordinary. And in return, the disabled learn not to lower their self-esteem because of their disability. They not only learn to respect others but also learn to respect themselves. And, of course, they experience all the benefits that everybody experiences in terms of improved confidence, fitness, co-ordination and, last but not least, how to defend themselves.
We believe that martial arts are for everyone. Martial arts provides a vehicle to enable a person to become the best individual they were ever destined to be. It is incumbent, therefore, on every dojo to open its doors to everybody that is sincere in wishing to learn the martial way and enjoy its benefits. When an individual overcomes the severest obstacles it is everybody’s success. In 1997 I was privileged to be present at the World Kobudo Championships, in Okinawa and saw one of our Canadian members being placed in the Kata competition. I think he won a silver medal. He is totally blind.
In order to give instructors an insight as to what it is like to teach to the disabled, a colleague, Terry Taylor, and myself started, what has now become, The National Martial Arts Disability Road Show. This is a day where instructors from about 10 different styles give their time to give taster sessions to disabled people from and around the local community. We usually get 200 – 300 participants involved in what always proves to be an exhausting and fun-packed day. The next tour will take place at the Aspire National Training Centre on Tuesday 19th September. We need more instructors so, if you are able to help us or would like to just come and watch or require any additional information, please contact the author on 020 8909 3759 or e-mail at barrymitchell99@yahoo.com for more information.
 
WAYNE NORMAN SHORT 1957 - 2000
SIFU AND MASTER SHAOLIN CH'UAN FA KUNG FU AND TAI CHI CH'UAN
BY
ANGELA SHORT
Wayne Norman Short was born in Melbourne, Australia on 14th March 1957. He grew up in a suburb of Melbourne called Pascoe Vale.  As a teenager, influenced by the TV series of Kung Fu and inspired by the exploits of Bruce Lee, he learned the Chinese Martial Art of Shaolin Ch'uan Fa Kung Fu in the City Centre School of Kung Fu, under Serge Ostermann. He attended four nights a week, arriving an hour before class to sweep the floor of the practice room. He became totally engrossed in the Chinese culture and taught himself the Cantonese language using headphones at night.
He often travelled to Hong Kong with his Chinese friends to learn more of the ancient Chinese Art of Tai Chi and healing systems. On one of his visits, Wayne saw a Buddhist Monk silently practising his Forms on Lantau Island. Recognising them as those he practised he showed the aged Monk what he had learned. Surprised by the Australian youth's understanding of his system the Monk agreed to teach him and in subsequent visits Wayne spent many days learning more of his internal system; he also learnt the more subtle approach and fundaments of the Tai Chi Ch'uan system.Basil Basery, Carter Wong, E Moko Nandi and Wayne Short in Hong Kong 1980
During his travels to Hong Kong he met Carter Wong the Chinese actor of Big Trouble in Little China fame with whom he trained .
I met Wayne in a night club in Moorabin, Australia, in 1986, where he asked me to dance. He tried to impress me by telling me he was a martial arts instructor. He didn’t know of course that my father, Norman Sangwin of United Martial Arts, my mother, sister and two brothers were all martial arts instructors and had taught me since I was six years old and that I was already a 3rd Dan in Ju Jitsu and Kung Fu. We married in England five months later.
We returned to Australia and for the next ten years we both taught Chinese and Japanese systems of martial arts, and the healing systems of Katsu as the World Budo Kai. Wayne was teaching full time in twenty-two different High Schools and Secondary Colleges – training in self defence more than 2000 students a year. He also assisted with the Lion Dance charity activities of the Chinese Masonic Lodge for many years. During these years we had three children, David, Holly and Keziah.
We came back to England in 1997 and continued to promote the systems we had taught in Australia; initially in East Yorkshire, but quickly extending to Hornsea and Keyingham under the East Riding County Council. Wayne also worked closely with the prison authorities at HM Prison Hull, successfully delivering Tai Chi classes to the inmates. Early in 1999 he was approached to teach Tai Chi for the Ministry of Defence in Leconfield, where his ability to relieve aching necks and backs became legendary.
During his life Wayne attained an understanding of the finer workings of the Chinese Internal Martial Arts systems rarely found outside the Chinese community. His gift was in being able to teach it with enthusiasm and flair that inspired the deep respect and admiration of those who knew him. His untimely death leaves a void in the Martial Arts community in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In his memory we will do our best to continue to pursue his dreams.