Denomination
Grandmaster Leung Ting, founder of the
International WingTsun Association, began teaching WingTsun
Kungfu in 1967 as an amateur instructor. In the following
year he started a Wing Tsun training class in the Baptist
College, the first kingfu class ever established in a university
of Hong Kong. Then in May 1970, he set up a well-equipped
gymnasium, called the Leung Ting Gymnasium, and commenced
to admit students publicly, and turned teaching martial
arts into a career.
With the support of his
followers and kungfu brothers, Grandmaster Leung founded the
Wing Tsun Leung Ting Martial-Art Assocation on 24 July 1973.
The full registered title of the Association was in fact the
“Wing Tsun Leung Ting Martial-Art Association & Leung
Ting Gymnasium”. Membership of this organization was based
on all the Wing Tsun practitioners of the Leung Ting Gymnasium
but was extended to accept other individuals who had an interest
in Wing Tsun but might not necessarily be practicing the technique.
At the end of 1975, the
name of the Association was changed to the “International
Wing Tsun Martial-Art Association”. The name had prevailed
for a number of years until 27 September 1983, when it was
further changed to the “International WingTsun Martial-Art
Association” for the reason that the term “WingTsun” (as against
Wing Tsun) had then become an internationally registered trademark
of the Wing Tsun system which Grandmaster Leung Ting had developed.
By late 1990’s, as the
title of “WingTsun” was well known all over the world, and
the Leung Ting WingTsun System had become a most popular Chinese
kungfu style internationally with probably the largest number
of students and followers, the name of the Association was
finally amended to the present title of “International WingTsun
Association”.
The Association and the Gymnasium
The functions of the International
WingTsun Association are twofold: the propagation and promotion
of the WingTsun System and the training of practitioners.
The Association overall
is an organization established to develop and promote the
WingTsun System in all parts of the world and is therefore
open to anybody interested to pursue this mission, whether
or not they are practicing the technique. The Association
is administered by an Executive Committee with officials elected
amongst members.
An important part of the
Association is the teaching of the WingTsun System and the
training of practitioners. The administration of affairs on
this side is handled by a special section of the Association
overseen by an independent Committee (called the Committee
of the Gymnasium). The Committee will ensure that all the
gymnasiums are adequately equipped and that all training and
coaching are undertaken with the highest standard by approved
and qualified instructors. All practitioners enrolled to receive
training must first register as members of the Association.
During the past years,
gymnasiums of the Association have produced a great number
of practitioners of such attainments who could in turn become
instructors themselves. To ensure the instructors are genuinely
qualified and that the training they give to their students
are of the highest standard, a subsidiary organization, named
the Instructors’ Organization, is established under the gymnasium
section of the Association, which appraises and regulates
the attainment of the instructors worldwide as well as assists
them in the setting up of their own gymnasium and training
classes. Practitioners must first register as a member of
this Organization. To become a member of the Instructors’
Organization, an applicant are required to be nominated, and
his or her nomination must be passed by all the members of
the Committee of the Gymnasium before he or she will be admitted
as a member.
In the Instructors’ Organization,
all the members are appraised by a strict grading system (divided
into 12 Levels) according to the degree of their accomplishment
and their contribution to the WingTsun System. The rules of
the Instructors’ Organizaton do not stipulate the possession
of the “Instructor’s Degree” for those intending to set up
branch schools, but they do required all the qualified instructors
to hold at least the 2nd Level. That is to say, if the principal
of a branch school does not have a recognized instructor,
the headman of the school must employ a qualified instructor
to teach the students.
All branches set up under
the WingTsun banner must meet strict requirements of the International
WingTsun Association, and the qualifications of all the instructors
and the headmen alike, are kept on the record of the Association,
which is open to enquiries by the public. This is to prevent
possible imposters and swindlers from ruining the reputation
of the WingTsun System and the Association.
Grading System
The Wing Tsun grading
system is divided into four Stages:
The Student Stage, comprising
twelve grades from the beginner to the graduate.
Primary
Grade Secord
Grade Third
Grade Forth
Grade Fifth
Grade Sixth
Grade
Seventh
Grade Eighth
Grade Nineth
Grade Tenth
Grade Eleventh
Grade Twelfth
Grade
The 12 student grades represented by 12 plum-blossom coloured
emblems
The Technician Stage, from the Primary to the Fourth Levels,
referring to the standard of technique training attained by
the holders, known as the Technicians. The degree holders
of these levels are regarded as having learned the techniques
of WingTsun and are able to use them, though not necessarily
efficiently enough to apply them at will.
The Practician Stage,
incorporating the Fifth to the Eighth Levels, which reflects
the standard of practical training and combat power training.
WingTsun experts who hold these degrees are known as Practicians.
They are regarded as being able to apply their techniques
with absolute proficiency and adeptness, besides having a
high standard of striking power. The higher in level a Practician
is promoted, the more he knows about the theories and techniques
of WingTsun. At this stage a Practician is able to understand
the theories of kungfu styles other than his own, and by comparing
the different theories, he will have a better understanding
of his own system, thus will be able to improve his WingTsun
techniques.
The Stage of Enlightenment,
comprising the Ninth to the Twelfth Levels, which reflect
the degree holder’s understanding of the theories of both
WingTsun and other martial arts systems. At this stage, the
WingTsun practitioner should have a thorough concept of WingTsun
system to such a depth that he will be able to explain any
theoretical problems, and to research into the strong and
weak points of the theories. Still further, he is able to
blend theories, not only of WingTsun, but also of other martial
arts, in a scientific and rationalized manner, into a sublime
level of philosophy.
Directory
Up to now, the International WingTsun Association has over
4,000 branches spread all over the world. With the headquarters
based in Hong Kong, branches and training schools are located
in sixty-three countries in Asia, North and South America,
Western and Eastern
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