Traditional Yang Style Taiji Quan

Master Zhang Yong Tao
www.zhangyongtao.com

My lao shi teacher : Zhang Yong Tao is the fifth generation Yang Style Taiji successor. He was born in 1943 in Henan, China. Now residing in Beijing. He is a chief judge in Wushu, an eighth rank in Wushu, the president of The Beijing Yang Style Taiji Research Association, the vice-president of The Beijing Senior Citizen Taiji Quan Association, a committee member of The Beijing Wushu Sports Association and the honourable president of The Hong Kong Yang Style Taiji Association.

He learned taiji quan at the age of ten from his maternal grandfather, Cui Li Zhi (1890/1970) and his own mother, Cui Xiu Chen (1918/1992). His grandfather, the fourth generation Yang Style Taiji successor, was a senior disciple of Yang Cheng Pu (1883/1936) whom is responsible for the present generation of Yang Style Taiji Quan, was the grandson of the founder of Yang Style Taiji Quan, Yang Lu Chan (1799/1872). In his years of training, my lao shi competed in national Taiji competitions. He was the Taiji Quan champion in the 1960 Beijing Youth Wushu Championship Competition. Consecutively from 1980 to 1983, he was the Taiji Broadsword champion in the open category of the National Wushu Championship Competition. In 1987 he was third in position in the Taiji Sword National Taiji Championship Competition. Consecutively from l991 to l993 he was first position in the Yang Style Taiji Quan, Taiji Broadsword and Taiji Sword. He was first position in Taiji Sword in the 2004 First World Traditional Taiji Quan And Wushu Competition.

He travels often to Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, France and Switzerland to conduct taiji quan workshops and lectures. He has overseas students going to Beijing to learn and practice taiji quan from him.
He wrote books on the Traditional Yang Style Taiji Quan, Sword, Broadsword, Cudgel and Spear. His latest book is on the Yang Style 13 Forms. This is an excellent book for beginners and comes with a compact disc showing all the different 13 forms of taiji for beginners.

I met my lao shi in Oct/Nov 2006 when he was visiting Singapore. Unaware of his status, I found him to be a good educator and teacher. He is unassuming and modest. I began to understand Taiji better. The next year I visited him in Beijing to learn from him more of the Traditional Yang Style. Subsequently, I visited him in 2009 and recently, in September 2010, to further upgrade my skill. During this trip, I was inspired to create this website and to introduce the different routines of the Traditional Yang Style Taiji that he teaches.

This web site is also dedicated to my students who are learning The Traditional Yang Style Taiji Quan Short Form 42 Movements from me; and to Eugene Wee Boon Hoe, wushu instructor, who encouraged me to teach taiji quan.