Wu Daqi or Wu Ta-ch'i (1926–1993) was the descendant of the famous

Wu-style tai chi Wu-style tai chi ( zh, c=吳氏太极拳, p=Wúshì tàijíquán) is one of the five main styles of tai chi. It is second in popularity after Yang-style, and the fourth-oldest of the five major tai chi styles. It was developed by Wu Quanyou an ...

founders

Wu Quanyou Wu Quanyou ( zh, c=吴全佑, w=Wu Ch‘üan-yu; 1834–1902) was an influential teacher of the tai chi martial art in late Imperial China. His son is credited as the founder of the Wu-style tai chi. As he was of Manchu descent, and would hav ...

(1834–1902) and

Wu Jianquan Wu Jianquan ( zh, c=吴鉴泉, w=Wu Chien-ch‘üan, p=Wú Jiànquán; 1870–1942) was a famous teacher and founder of the ''neijia'' martial art of Wu-style tai chi in late Imperial and early Republican China. Biography Wu Jianquan was ta ...

(1870–1942). He directed Wu-style tai chi instruction outside of

Mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...

after the death of his father

Wu Gongyi Wu Gongyi ( zh, c=吳公儀, p=Wú Gōngyí, w=Wu Kung-i; 1898–1970) was a well-known teacher of the soft style martial art tai chi in China, and, after 1949, in British Hong Kong. He was also the "gate-keeper" of the Wu family from 1942 unt ...

(1900–1970) and brother Wu Ta-kuei (1923–1972) from the Wu-style tai chi headquarters in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

internationally.

Biography

Born in China to a distinguished martial arts family, Wu Daqi, with his brother Wu Ta-kuei, sister

Wu Yanxia Wu Yanxia or Wu Yen-hsia (1930–2001) was a Chinese tai chi teacher of Manchu ancestry. Biography She was the daughter of Wu Gongyi (1900-1970) from whom she learned tai chi. She also helped teach her father's students. Wu Yanxia was the ...

and his first cousin

Wu Daxin Wu Daxin or Wu Ta-hsin (1933–2005) was a Chinese tai chi teacher who lived most of his life in Hong Kong. He was the great-grandson Wu-style tai chi founder Wu Quanyou and the grandson of the well-known teacher Wu Jianquan. He directed the Wu f ...

, endured strict training from their nationally famous grandfather and father. Being the grandchildren of the family, they were traditionally expected to inherit the family art of

tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...

that their great-grandfather Wu Quanyou had first learned from

Yang Luchan Yang Luchan ( zh, c=杨露禅, w=Yang Lu-ch'an, p=Yáng Lùchán), also known as Yang Fukui (1799–1872), was an influential Chinese practitioner and teacher of the internal style tai chi martial art. He is known as the founder of Yang-styl ...

(1799–1872) and his son

Yang Banhou Yang Banhou (Yang Pan-hou; 1837–1890) was an influential teacher of tai chi in Qing dynasty China, known for his bellicose temperament. Biography He was the eldest son of Yang Luchan to survive to adulthood. Like his father, he was retaine ...

(1837–1890). When Wu Gongyi migrated with his family to Hong Kong in the 1940s, Wu Daqi assisted his father in the propagation and teaching of tai chi. During the 1950s under the instructions of Wu Gongyi, Wu Daqi and his cousin

(1933–2005) travelled extensively to

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

to start and support academies promoting Wu-style tai chi. Their efforts met with success, making the region a key centre of Wu-style tai chi outside of Hong Kong and China. Wu Daqi's chief disciple Chu Weng-Moon in Malaysia and his fellow disciples continue to teach Wu-style tai chi. In 1974, Wu Daqi was invited by the Chinese Canadian Kuo Shu Federation to teach in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Ontario, Canada where he established the first Wu family school outside of

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. The

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

school founded by Wu Daqi was entrusted to his nephew

Wu Kuang-yu Eddie Wu Kuang-yu or Wu Guangyu (born 1946) is a Chinese-Canadian tai chi teacher. He is the eldest son of the late Wu Ta-k'uei and senior instructor of the Wu family and "Gatekeeper" of the Wu-style as taught in the Wu's tai chi Academies i ...

(Eddie Wu) in 1976. Wu Daqi was a member of the advisory board of the Martial Art Association in Hong Kong.

References

External links

* http://www.wustyle.com/ International Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan Federation website * http://www.wustyledetroit.com/ Detroit, Michigan Wu style website 1926 births 1993 deaths Chinese tai chi practitioners Manchu martial artists {{PRChina-martialart-bio-stub