The “God of Spear” Li Shu-Wen
『神槍』李書文
The “God of Spear” Li Shu-Wen was the most well-known Bajiquan master and DaQiang (Grand Spear) fighter in the history of Chinese Martial Arts. Li had an undefeated record throughout his lifetime and had infamously injured or killed many of his opponents during dual-matches. Li’s most significant achievement was that he had trained three outstanding disciples who were the head bodyguards and trainer for China’s last emperor Pu-Yi, the infamous communist leader Mao Tse-Tung, and the founding president of Taiwan, Jiang Kai-Shek.
The Grandmaster, Liu Yun-Qiao
『一代宗師』劉雲樵
Grandmaster Liu was a native of the He Bei province, which had historically produced many famous martial artists in the history of China. He learned his trademark Bajiquan under the famous “God of Spear" Li Shu-Wen and studied with Li daily for fifteen years. With unmatchable opportunities, Grandmaster Liu also studied with two of the top Grandmasters of the era: Ding Zi-Cheng 丁子成 of Liu He Tang Lang and Gong Bao-Tien 宮寶田 of Bagua Zhang systems.
During the Sino Japanese War, Liu was absorbed into the KMT secret service, which specialized in infiltration and assassination assignments. In 1968, General Kung Ling-Cheng recommended Grandmaster Liu to serve as the head trainer for President Chiang Kai-Shek's bodyguards and special forces.
After retirement, Grandmaster Liu founded Wu Tan Chinese Martial Arts Center and devoted the remainder of his life to promote traditional Chinese Martial Arts.
Dr. Chen Chang-Lin
陳長霖 博士
The late Master Chen Chang-Lin was a “Wu” (1st) generation disciple of Grandmaster Liu Yun-Qiao. Master Chen started training under Grandmaster Liu at a young age. After 15 years, he had mastered the MiTzung, Baji, Pigua, Bagua systems from Grandmaster Liu. In the early 1970s, Master Chen was deeply involved with the establishment of the original Wu Tan Martial Arts Center in Jingmei, Taipei.
In 1981, Master Chen Chang-Lin came to New York to pursue his PhD degree in Computer Science. He established Wu Tan NY in Queens, New York. The school on Northern Blvd was introduced to potential martial artists on the east coast under the instruction of Master Chen. Master Chen promoted and taught the importance of “martial ethics” 武德 and traditional Chinese cultural ideologies in tandem with teaching martial arts as they are so interwoven.
Master Chen then moved to Millburn, New Jersey in 1993, establishing Wu Tan NJ. Of all the students that Master Chen had carefully selected, only thirteen students were to be inducted as his "Tan" generation indoor disciples. In close to thirty years of hard work by all of the people involved, Wu Tan NJ has not only maintained the original spirit and lineage of martial arts training but it has also devoted itself to developing and integrating training programs, standardizing form materials, and establishing the Wu Tan ranking system.
Master Chen passed away due to a sudden aneurysm in April of 2005. His disciples continued to carry on the torch of Wu Tan NJ's teachings. In 2015, disciple and head coach Vincent Mei moved to New York City and is currently running Wu Tan NJ in lower Manhattan.
Master Chen’s elder son Yi-Chung Chen, is a fitness-science expert who implements the Basic-Eight principal adapted from Traditional Chinese Martial Arts into western sports to enhance performance and injury preventions.
Other disciples such as coach William Feng, coach Paul Yang, coach Ted Yuan, and coach Alvin Kong are also working diligently continue teaching Wu Tan Kung fu in Queens, NY, Henan, China, Shenzhen, China, and Laos.
Vincent Mei
Vincent is an entrepreneur, runs a digital marketing agency in New York. He started learning Muay Thai during his high school years. He was first introduced to TCMA by his kung fu brother Paul Yang, and learned under Master Chen in 1996. Vincent is currently managing and teaching at Wu Tan NJ in lower Manhattan.
William Feng
William was a former NYPD, had several honorary achievements during his service in the police force. William had over 30 years of martial arts experience, and is a strong believer of modernizing TCMA’s combat capability. He is currently teaching at Kissena Park in Queens NY on Sundays.
Paul Yang
Paul started learning authentic Seven-Star Praying Mantis in high school. Paul came to Brooklyn, NY to pursue his Master Degree in Computer Science. He is currently residing in ShenZhen, China, and is coaching the Beijing University’s, Qing Hua University’s, Harbin University’s Martial Arts Clubs.