Chan Yuen-wu
陳遠護
Uncle and first teacher of Chan Heung, a fighter from the Qingyun Temple near Mount Dinghu, whose Fut Gar gave its name to one component of the Choy Li Fut style.
Quick Facts
ChinaBiography
Chan Yuen-wu (陳遠護) was the uncle and first teacher of Chan Heung, the founder of the Choy Li Fut style, and is counted among the notable Fut Gar representatives. We have not been able to find his birth and death dates in the sources.
He was a fighter from the Qingyun Temple near Mount Dinghu, where he studied under the monk Du Zhang. His older fellow student Li Yau-san belonged to the same school.
He taught his nephew Chan Heung, born on 23 August 1806 in Jing Mei village, Xinhui District, Guangdong Province, Fut Gar from the age of seven. According to sources, his Fut Gar concentrates on palm techniques. When Chan Heung was fifteen, he himself took him to Li Yau-san, with whom the nephew studied Li Gar for four years.
In 1836 Chan Heung founded the Choy Li Fut style and named it, among other things, in honour of Chan Yuen-wu: the Fut in the style's name refers to his Fut Gar.