Lo Man-kam (martial artist)
Lo Man Kam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Relatives | Sifu:Yip Man（Uncle） Son:Gorden Lu Daughter:Shirley Lu |
Lo Man Kam was born in 1933 in Hong Kong. His father married the eldest daughter of the Foshan, Guangdong Yip (Ip) family, Yip Gat (elder sister of Yip Man).
Early life
The Yip family were wealthy aristocrats in Foshan, Guangdong, and lived on Fu Xian Road, at an estate called Mulberry Garden. The Yip family had 10 sons and 9 daughters. Because of their family’s status as aristocrats for multiple generations, every one of their sons received a big mansion. In the Mulberry garden were more than 10 Yip family mansions.
When Yip Man was around 13 years old, Chan Wah Shun, disciple of Leung Jan, rented the Yip family ancestor hall to teach Wing Chun. This is how Yip Man became a disciple of Chan Wah Shun.
During the Qing dynasty in Guangdong, Foshan, members of the Lo (Lu) family were government officials, as were many of their ancestors in many generations. Thus, the Lo family lived in the housing provided to government officials which were guarded by the Qing Green Standard Army. The lobby of this Lo family residence has pair of royal plaques bestowed by Emperor of the Qing dynasty.
During the two major wars in China (the First and Second Sino-Japanese Wars), everything was destroyed. Owing to this, Lo family members temporarily stayed with the younger brother of Yip Man, Yip Ten, in his large mansion in Mulberry Garden. After the war, the Lo family moved back to Hong Kong. Yip Man left Foshan for Hong Kong later, in 1949, after the Chinese Communist Party established the People's Republic of China on the Chinese mainland.
After Yip Man moved back to Hong Kong, he taught Wing Chun in the office of the Kowloon Hotel Union. It was at that time that Sifu Lo Man Kam started to learn from his uncle Yip Man. When Lo first started to learn Wing Chun in Hong Kong, there were only 5-7 students of Yip Man, including senior disciple Leung Sheung, Lok Yiu, Chu Shong-tin, Chan Kau, and little brother Yip (who was 13 years old at the time).
Leung Sheung was the chairman of the Hotel Union at the time, and when his term was up, he had no right to use the space anymore; therefore Yip Man had to find a new location at which to teach. He moved first to Kowloon Beach Street, then Castle Peak Road, then to Lee Tat Street (where Bruce Lee entered his lineage) and finally to Lee Chang House village.
Army career
Sifu Lo was encouraged by his uncle Yip Man to teach in Taiwan before he moved to Taiwan in the 60’s. When Sifu Lo first moved to Taiwan, he underwent special military training. After graduation, Sifu Lo was appointed to work at the Ministry of National Defense in Taiwan. In 1975, he retired as a Major, and open his Wing Chun Kung Fu school in Neihu, Taipei, Taiwan. Immediately after opening the school, he had student named Duby (from Reunion) and James (from Madagascar). These students could be the first foreign disciples that participated in the “ Bai Si Lai” (Ceremony for honor the Sifu and to be accepted as official disciple) in the Taiwan WuShu (martial art) community.
Teach Taiwan SWAT
In 1990, due to a speech given by Sifu Lo, the Taiwan Special Police Force First Corps leader Dr. Lu, who recognized the value of Lo’s talent, appointed him to be a Taiwan Special Police Force instructor.
In 1992, when the Republic of China-Taiwan started its first SWAT team, Sifu Lo was appointed to be the first SWAT team head instructor.
In 1993, Dr. Lu from the Special Police Force got promoted to the principle of the Taiwan Police College. Sifu Lo then joined him at the Police College and continued teach and train future police officers and training instructors. Sifu Lo also helped the Police College by authoring the text book “Police Kung Fu”, which focuses on hand-to-hand combat techniques. This book has been translated to English and sold in the US and later translated to Russian as well.
At this time, director of Taiwan National Security Bureau had appointed Sifu Lo to teach Taiwan CIA hand-to-hand combat training, and also to write Bureau of Investigation teaching materials. Sifu Lo worked as training instructor for the Taiwan National Security Bureau 10 years. Sifu Lo also helped the Taiwan Judicial Yuan (Department) by authoring material for the Judicial police hand book and other training material, as well as serving as Taiwan Judicial Yuan training instructor.
Sifu Lo’s position at the Police College, beginning with the term of Principle Dr. Lu, and continuing through the term of 5 other principles, lasted 18 years. Every now and then, he is invited back to give special training lessons.
Teach career
In terms of legacy of Wing Chun Kung Fu, Sifu Lo’s son Gorden Lu, has been teaching Wing Chun in East Coast of the United States for more than 10 years. Many of Sifu Lo’s earlier disciples also have schools teaching Wing Chun in many parts of the world. People from many parts of the world such as France, New Zealand, Australia, US and many other countries in Europe have also came all the way to Taiwan to enter the door of the Lo Man Kam Wing Chun Kung Fu family. Many of them have themselves become Sifu, and teach the 3rd generation. Lo Man Kam Wing Chun Kung Fu has students and schools more than 40 countries, thus one may consider the Lo Man Kam Wing Chun Kung Fu family as a melting pot of Wing Chun throughout the world.