The Training
The Shanxi Wushu Team training rituals were brutal at best. There was a high
turnover rate in the select dozen that represented their province, but certainly
not by choice. Usually one year or less was all
the young bodies could take before a tendon snapped or a bone broke from the
shear stress of practice. Zhang Yuan was one of the lucky ones, lasting a
full three years to reach the pinnacle of his career.
“The team was a family—’one heart’ we used to say.
It was an extreme honor to belong and an extreme responsibility to maintain,”
explained master Zhang Yuan through his good friend, grandmaster Wang
Rengang, who served as interpreter.
“It was a lot of hard work. Every day we would get up before the sun
to go running, and then we would train for eight to ten hours straight. There
was a high dropout rate from injuries and also a high replacement rate. You
had to perform to win ... and win consistently. Anyone was expendable. Only
the team was important, and anyone of us would have gladly given our lives
for the sake of the team.”
Breaking Down
The young Zhang Yuan almost did just that. At the tender age of 15, his body
was as worn down as an elderly man. The cartilage in his knees was damaged,
his back would go out, his feet looked deformed and he suffered from spontaneous
fractures in several bones. “The saddest day of my life was to leave
my team, but I was of no more use. The physical pain was secondary to the
loss I felt emotionally.”
For the next couple years, he had to heal himself with traditional Chinese
medicine and acupuncture. He also studied Shaolin-style qigong, which did
wonders for his emotional healing and strength retraining. He never accepted
that his martial arts career could be over. He simply gave himself enough
time to heal until he could move on to the next phase.
Zhang Yuan began his formal martial arts training at the age of 8. Like so many other Chinese masters, Zhang’s parents sent him for training because he was sickly and they wanted the kung-fu to make him strong. His first teacher was his grandmother’s brother, who took him to watch the Shi An tournament when he was 10. “My heart was afire,” he recalled. “Watching this tournament made me determined to be a kung-fu master.” His parents encouraged him to follow his dream and allowed him to enter a special kung-fu-only elementary boarding school. However, the more he excelled in his training, the harsher his father’s treatment of him became.
For His Own Good?
During his brief sojourns home, he would sneak out at night to practice while
everyone else was asleep to avoid his father hitting him over the head whenever
he made the slightest mistake.
“In this time and place, my father’s actions would be considered
child
abuse,” Yuan admitted. “Back then it was a normal thing for a
father to do. I know he was showing me love. I know he was teaching me life’s
hard lessons. He
wanted me to be ‘higher like the dragon’ and not poor like him
with a lot of mouths that were hard to feed. As the eldest son, it was up
to me to succeed... it was all up to me. I had to succeed where my father
failed. Kung-fu was our way out.”
During his second year at the boarding school, Zhang participated in his
first tournament, which was province-wide and not separated into various levels
of ability. Novices and masters alike competed within the same divisions.
Incredibly, he placed fifth in forms competition and was subsequently selected
to enter grand- master Zhang Tung’s private and exclusive school. Zhang
Tung is a highly respected xingyi grandmaster who became famous at 16 for
having struck down three armed bandits with his bare hands. He became the
student of Huang Bo-Nian, who was known as “fast hands Huang”
and whose teacher was Li Cun Yi (student of Dong Hai Chuan, the founder of
bagua zhang).
This training at grandmaster Zhang Tung’s school took place every evening
after his regular school day. There were three tiers involved in training
with grandmaster Zhang. The first tier studied with a senior student for one
year or more. The second tier had some contact with the grandmaster and was
allowed to compete. A select few were chosen for the third tier to study directly
from the grandmaster. This usually took years, if ever. Zhang spent only a
short time at the first level, then was promoted to second level and allowed
to compete in the National San Da Competition.
A Master’s Faith
He knew he had to produce to justify the grandmaster’s faith in him,
He vowed that he would not return home if he failed to win a medal. His father
happily read in the newspaper that his son had won fourth place. The win gave
him a spot on the Shanxi province team, making him the youngest member at
age 12. Before the three years were even completed, he was allowed to study
directly with grandmaster Zhang Tung. His senior kung-fu brother who taught
him in Tier One wasn’t happy. He didn’t believe that Zhang deserved
to be there. It took winning the national titles in xingyi and baji forms
a few years later to finally win the respect of his elder brother.
During his post-retirement healing, Zhang’s association with the Shaolin Temple led to a featured part in a documentary, which in turn launched a lucrative career with Xian Movie studios. Zhang rapidly ascended the ranks from Wushu art director to lead actor, and\ eventually director of kung-fu movie. His celebrity status led to appointme1ts with the People’s Liberation Army of China as well as to the Xian Police Force.
Despite his accomplishments in his native land, his father had higher hopes
for his young dragon. The senior Zhang had spent some time in America and
was struck by the idea of equality here. S peaking of his father’s view
of America, Zhang noted, “No matter what your parents’ station
in life, everyone is pretty much on equal footing with success being directly
related to the efforts of the individual.”
He was particularly impressed with the U.S. popularity and success of Zhang’s
contemporary, Jet Li. Upon his father’s advice, Zhang immigrated to
the U.S. in 2001. By 2002 he held positions in several universities as well
as with the New York Police Department as a specialized trainer. In 2003 seven
of his Brooklyn students participated in their first tournament, winning:
Two Grand Championships.
Nine Gold medals
One Silver medal.
He now has an additional school in Queens, N.Y. Though Zhang’s rocket
to fame has yet to take flight, this dragon is definitely rising.
“Chinese martial arts are not only for military training, but also serves
the purposes of health, character development and discipline,” Zhang
explained. “Correct kung-fu training provides an individual with an
excellent method of exercise, a personal arts form, a competitive sport and
a basis for sparring and self-defense. “Kung-fu is not difficult to
learn; it is very simple and uses the laws of motion and physics to accomplish
the job,” he added. “All it really takes is determination and
practice to improve oneself physically. Practice often
For more information on master Zhang Yuan, his school or classes, contact
www.nycwushu.com
Julie Milner is a freelance writer living in New York. She can be reached at zentouchi@rnsn.corn