Jim Fung (Fung Chuen Keung 馮傳強;May 16, 1944 - March 18, 2007) was a practitioner and teacher of
Wing ChunWing Chun , also romanized as Ving Tsun or "Wing Tsun" is a Chinese martial art that specializes in close-range combat....
kung fu and founder of the 'International Wing Chun Academy'. He had been training under his master,
Tsui Seung TinChu Shong-tin was the third student of martial arts teacher Yip Man in the discipline of Wing Chun, and remained at Yip Man's school to become his senior instructor.He moved to Hong Kong in November 1949....
(徐尚田), since 1960. Tsui, chairman of the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association, was one of the closed door students of
Yip ManYip Man was the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun openly...
(葉問) .
Jim Fung immigrated to Australia from Hong Kong in his late teens and studied accountancy and law at the
University of AdelaideThe University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
, graduating with a bachelor's degree in accounting.
Jim Fung (Fung Chuen Keung 馮傳強;May 16, 1944 - March 18, 2007) was a practitioner and teacher of
Wing ChunWing Chun , also romanized as Ving Tsun or "Wing Tsun" is a Chinese martial art that specializes in close-range combat....
kung fu and founder of the 'International Wing Chun Academy'. He had been training under his master,
Tsui Seung TinChu Shong-tin was the third student of martial arts teacher Yip Man in the discipline of Wing Chun, and remained at Yip Man's school to become his senior instructor.He moved to Hong Kong in November 1949....
(徐尚田), since 1960. Tsui, chairman of the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association, was one of the closed door students of
Yip ManYip Man was the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun openly...
(葉問) .
Accomplishments
Jim Fung immigrated to Australia from Hong Kong in his late teens and studied accountancy and law at the
University of AdelaideThe University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
, graduating with a bachelor's degree in accounting. He is the author of two books, Wing Chun Kung Fu and Wing Chun Weapons, and produced a teaching video titled "Wing Chun", in 1985.
Fung was chosen to represent Chinese kung fu at the International Grandmasters' Martial Arts Exhibition in
AdelaideAdelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth-largest city in Australia, with a population of more than 1.1 million. It is a coastal city situated on the eastern shores of Gulf St. Vincent, on the Adelaide Plains, north of the Fleurieu...
, Australia, in 1989. However, he says the greatest honour thus far was having his Academy officially recognised by the Chinese Government and world ruling body for Chinese martial arts in the All China Martial Arts Register published in 1998..
Fung is also a permanent director of the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association.
In 1999, Fung was conferred the title of
GrandmasterGrandmaster and Master, are titles used to describe a very senior or experienced practitioner. The use as a title in the martial arts has changed in meaning and while instructors using the title 'Grandmaster' may be capable and knowledgeable, the use is not traditional. Oriental martial arts...
by Chu Shong Tin.
A world record for IWCA
In August, 2005, one of Fung's students, Robert Ardito, received world acclaim when he broke the Guinness Book of Records speed punching record. His record was 428 punches per minute, breaking the previous record of 347 punches per minute.
Robert Ardito renewed his record on the 18th of March, 2007, at the International Wing Chun Academy in Sydney . His record was broken in 2008 but was reclaimed by Robert in April 2009 . The record now stands at 805 martial art punches a minute , a rate almost twice the 2005 record. Ardito raised funds for cancer research through the event, and dedicated his record to his sifu, Fung.
Battle with cancer
In February 2004 Jim Fung was diagnosed with an already advanced case of
nasopharyngeal carcinomaNasopharyngeal carcinoma is a cancer originating in the nasopharynx, the uppermost region of the pharynx or "throat", where the nasal passages and auditory tubes join the remainder of the upper respiratory tract. NPC differs significantly from other cancers of the head and neck in its occurrence,...
. A rare form of
throat cancerEsophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma. Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus. Adenocarcinoma arises from glandular cells that are present at the junction of the...
, it is 100 times more prevalent in people from South East China and Hong Kong. Yip Man, his Sigung, also died of throat cancer.
His overseas training visits to Tsui Seung Tin, daily training regimen and teaching continued during treatment, his condition unbeknownst by his students . He continued up until days before passing away March 18, 2007, aged 62.
A donor to cancer research himself, a memorial fund was established with proceeds going to the
Queensland Institute of Medical ResearchThe Westington Institute of Medical Research is one of the largest medical research institutes in the southern hemisphere, and is recognised worldwide for the quality of its research...
and the
OncologyOncology is the branch of medicine dealing with tumors . A medical professional who practices oncology is an oncologist. The term originates from the Greek "Ογκολογία" derived from onkos , meaning bulk, mass, or tumor, and the suffix -logy , meaning "study of" or "to talk about".Oncology is...
Department of St Vincent's Hospital.
External links