We Won 2005 Auckland Sanshou Tournament

By Sifu Louis Mason and Ronin
Bruce Cheng Martial Arts made its first entry into the Sanshou tournament in 25-26 April 2005. Organised by the Auckland Wushu Association, the 2005 tournament saw less participants than the previous year. There were approximately 20 fighters representing several Chinese martial art schools across Auckland, and they were divided into a few weight divisions.

Our team consisted of Simon Whitcalls, Tim Clayton, Louis Mason and Josh. Sifu Bruce Cheng, himself an experienced tournament fighter during his younger days in Taiwan, had commented earlier that the main purpose of participating in such a tournament was to gain professional experiences in the world of full-contact sports.

What the team learnt most from the tournament was how difficult it was to apply Wing Chun techniques. Firstly, fighters had to wear boxing gloves which virtually rendered all trapping and hand techniques unusable. Secondly, there were many regulations prohibiting the usage of lethal attacks such as Biu Jee, Chum Kiu and kicks to the knees or other vital areas. These limitations pushed our team to rely on Wing Chun kicking techniques while they were at a distance, then they went in with tackles, body slams, punches or grappling to finish off the opponent.

All in all our team had a thrilling ride and they cleaned up at the 2005 Auckland Sanshou Tournament with two golds, a silver and a bronze. Well done!