The 13th and 14th of December saw Sifu Rainer Tausend round off 2008 with a return to Dublin for a series of instructor seminars. The seminars took place in the Blanchardstown school with instructors and trainee instructors attending from the Dublin City Centre, Larne and Blanchardstown Schools.
The first day started off with instruction in the three WingTsun forms. Following this Sifu Tausend concentrated on the chi-sau reactions which allow the WingTsun practitioner to absorb the force from their opponents attack and deliver a counterattack in one smooth movement. Traditionally in WingTsun, chi-sau sections are learned with movements being taught in a sequential manner, one after the other. Each chi-sau section focuses on a specific theme however these predetermined movements are merely an introduction to what is being taught and help define what is included in the module. They are not an end in themselves and should not be viewed as a dance. The real work starts after the student memorises the sequence and from there they take apart the movements and work each item intensively so that they can react appropriately to whatever attack is delivered.
On day two the participants worked on their own individual programmes with some participants working on weapon defences, others on more advanced chi-sau from either the Biu-Tze form or from movements learned with the wooden dummy.
Towards the end of the day Daragh Breathnach was tested by Sifu Tausend for his 8th student grade. Daragh has been a student in the Blanchardstown school for the past few years and wanted to commit to his WingTsun further by becoming an assistant instructor. The 8th grade is the minimum requirement to be an assistant instructor and with the attainment of this grade Daragh joins Michael O’Leary, Chris Donnelly and Declan Brennan on the Blanchardstown instructor team.
James McQuaid was presented with his Primary Level Certificate by Sifu Tausend. James is the school leader in Larne and travels on a regular basis to Blanchardstown to train under Michael O’Leary. He also helps to teach students in the Blanchardstown school and is well known for his friendly teaching style and sense of humour. With the attainment of his Primary Level, James will now start to learn the Biu-Tze form. This is the third and final empty hand form in WingTsun and the techniques and strategy differ significantly from the previous forms.
Nicolas Maraite was presented with his 2nd Technical Grade Certificate by Sifu Tausend. Nicolas who helps to teach in Dublin’s City Centre school received his Primary Level in 2006 and has spent the last two years learning and refining the Biu-Tze form while developing his chi-sau further. Now that he has reached 2nd Technical Grade he will start to take the movements from the Biu-Tze, learn how they are applied in self-defence and from there integrate them into his chi-sau. He will also start to learn the wooden dummy.
Sifu Tausend concluded his visit with some private lessons on the Monday afternoon and will visit Ireland in the spring of next year for a weekend of student seminars in Dublin and Belfast.
The instructors and students in the Irish WingTsun Organisation would like to thank Sifu Tausend for all his help and support in 2008 and wish both he and his family a very happy Christmas.