Translations (译文)
Connections is available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, French, German, and Chinese. We are very grateful for our translators who volunteered to translate: Rubén Coirini, Daniela Famulari, Gennaro Ripa, Françoise Desagnat, Jean-Claude Miremont, Thilo Krienke, Davi Garritano, Huang Gang, Zhao Ruiyuan, and Yao Tiebin. Thank you very much! Here are the links to the other languages:
Welcome to Our New Members
I would like to welcome all new members who have recently joined Yang Family Tai Chi. Thank you for joining us and welcome to our tai chi family! I am happy you have chosen to join us and hope that you feel welcome and receive great value from your membership.
I hope that all members will have a long and fulfilling relationship with our association. For those members who have been with us through the years, I appreciate that you have chosen to stay with us as we continue to spread tai chi chuan worldwide to help humankind.
Sincerely,
Yang Jun
President
New Year Letter
Dear Directors, Instructors, Association Members, and all Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan Practitioners:
Greetings to you this holiday season! I want to sincerely thank you for your support and enthusiasm during the past year. Thanks to everyone’s help, 2019 was a very successful year for Yang Family Tai Chi. In fact, I believe that in 2019 we successfully accomplished more than in any other year of our association and made great progress in sharing Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan with the world.
In 2019, we held two major events. The 2019 International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium took place in May in Selvino, Italy. The symposium was a truly international event with people attending from 22 countries. Masters from the six major styles of tai chi chuan gathered together for the first time in Europe and taught workshops. The symposium would not have been possible without the help of a large number of people who gave their time to help organize this event. I am deeply grateful for everyone’s help. The other major event was the First International Yang Family (Style) Tai Chi Chuan Elite Tournament which was held in October in China. The tournament had more than 1500 competitors from 23 provinces in China. That’s almost every province in China. From the time our association was created 20 years ago, I have spent my time spreading Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan in many countries around the world outside of China. In 2017, my focus shifted to China. For the past 3 years, I have spent a great deal of my time there traveling and working so it felt very personally rewarding for me to see so many people from all over China participating in our tournament.
In 2019, about 15,000 people came to the classes in China that I volunteered to teach as part of my grandfather’s friendly healthy China tai chi teaching challenge. My grandfather, Master Yang Zhenduo, encouraged everyone to volunteer some of their time to teach tai chi. Seeing so many people attend made me feel very encouraged about our future in China.
We are already planning some events for 2020. In July, it will be 30 years since my grandfather and I first traveled to the U.S. to teach in Winchester, VA. We are planning a 30th anniversary celebration in Winchester in July. Also, in August my grandfather will celebrate his 95th birthday. He was the first in our Yang family lineage to travel to the West and spread our family’s tai chi chuan overseas. The celebration is being planned for August 9th. I hope to see you there and would especially encourage people who have met or studied with him to attend. We would like the celebration to have an international feeling and would like to have multicultural entertainment at the party like we had at the symposium in May. We will also hold the 2nd International Yang Family (Style) Tai Chi Chuan Elite Tournament around this time.
I feel the success of 2019 truly came from everyone working together to support Yang Family Tai Chi. Thank you so much for all the many ways that you contributed to our success. I wish you good health, peace, and happiness in 2020!
Sincerely,
Yang Jun
President
Master Yang Zhenduo's Upcoming 95th Birthday
In August 2020, Master Yang Zhenduo will celebrate his 95th birthday and we are planning a big celebration in China! We will provide more information later but we are planning the celebration for August 9. We will also hold the 2nd International Yang Family (Style) Tai Chi Chuan Elite Tournament. This two-day tournament is being planned for August 11-12. We hope you will join us in China!
Tournament in Linfen, China
The First International Yang Family (Style) Tai Chi Chuan Elite Tournament was held in Linfen, Shanxi province from October 12th to October 14th. More than 1,500 athletes practicing Yang Style Tai Chi participated in the event. Master Yang Jun led the event and other famous tai chi chuan masters such as Zhao You Bin, Yang Zhifang and Yang Bin were also present at the event. The tournament was sponsored by Yang Family Tai Chi. We received much positive feedback from those who attended. Thank you to everyone for helping make this event a success!
Instructor Certification Renewal
Posting to Yang Family Tai Chi's Social Media Pages
Want to post news on Yang Family Tai Chi's social media pages?
Yang Family Tai Chi would like to keep its social media pages updated with current information from the association, centers, and schools. Ana Horta is managing Yang Family Tai Chi's social media pages on Facebook and Instagram. If you would like to share news on Yang Family Tai Chi's social media pages, please send an email to Ana at anamaghorta@gmail.com.
Singapore Conference and Tournament
This summer, Master Yang Jun attended a conference and international wushu tournament in Singapore. He gave a presentation on the international development of tai chi chuan.
Healthy China with Tai Chi
Master Yang Jun continued to volunteer his time teaching classes as part of his grandfather's "healthy China with tai chi" teaching challenge. This summer he visited many cities. About 15,000 people attended his classes this year as part of this volunteer effort.
Datong
Zhangjiakou
TTM-1
The U.S. Teacher Academy held its Fall TTM-1 seminar October 4-7 in Danbury, CT. This event was organized by Mari Lewis, U.S.A. Teacher Academy Head Director. Thank you to Master Yang Jun and the TTM faculty for all their work organizing and delivering a successful seminar!
Guest Presenter: Dr. Patricia Huston
Western countries have been slow to accept tai chi's health benefits. This is mainly due to the medical community requiring scientific evidence supporting those benefits. Guest presenter Dr. Patricia Huston, MD, CCFP, MPH, of the University of Ottawa in Canada gave a presentation that reviewed the current recognized scientific studies of the health benefits of tai chi.
There were over twenty health conditions addressed. Conditions which showed the strongest support for beneficial results from tai chi practice were: promoting balance and preventing falls, relieving depression, Parkinson's disease, dementia and reversing disease progression in osteoarthritis. Conditions with very good results included sleep, hypertension, and fibromyalgia.
An obstacle for the Western medical community and its insurance providers to accept and recommend tai chi for these conditions is the lack of proof of how tai chi produces these results. There is interest in the scientific community to study and solve this question. Two current theories are:
1) Tai chi repairs and keeps the fascia that surrounds our muscles, tendons, and organs in optimal condition. Tai chi's movements help return the fascia to its optimal state and the health benefits follow.
2) Tai chi may aid in promoting the body's own healing capacity. This theory works on a cellular level specifically targeting the cells involved in immunity and repair.
Master Yang Jun's Seminar Schedule
Instructor Training - Kunming, China
In July, the annual instructor training (sections 1 & 2) was held in Kunming, China.
Seminar at Shanxi YFTC Center
In August, Master Yang Jun taught hand form sessions at the Shanxi YFTC Center. He also began a new push hands training (the first of three sections of push hands).
Seminar in Michigan, U.S.A.
The YFTC Center in Royal Oak, Michigan (Director: Han Hoong Wang) hosted a hand form, push hands, and sword seminar with Master Yang Jun August 31 - September 4.
Instructor Seminar - Italy
Instructors gathered in the medieval town of San Gemini, Italy October 18-20 for an instructor seminar taught by Master Yang Jun. The event was organized by Claudio Mingarini, Director of YFTC Center in Rome.
Seminar in Lyon, France
Bambou Balance (a YFTC School) and Edyta Piatkowska-Wu (School Director) hosted a Traditional Hand Form seminar with Master Yang Jun October 24-27 in Lyon, France.
Tai chi practice in the Gallo-Roman Grand Theater was a unique experience. This theater is part of an area of ancient Roman ruins in Lyon. Back around 43 BC during the Roman era, the Romans settled the area, building a town. The theater, estimated to have been built around 15 BC, is part of the ancient Roman district that is now an archaeological park open to tourists.
Seminar participants enjoyed an amazing view of Lyon from a beautiful park named the Garden of Curiosities. They also were very lucky with the weather. It rained before and after the seminar but during all four seminar days, the sky was blue!
First Seminar in Uruguay
Master Yang Jun's first seminar in Uruguay took place November 9-11. This successful Traditional Hand Form seminar was hosted by Bambú del Este School (a YFTC School) led by Leonardo Ratto (School Director). Eighty students came from Uruguay and also different schools in nearby countries. For many students, this was the first time they met Master Yang, previously only learning from him through his videos. They appreciated his clear teaching of theory and practical technique and enjoyed his friendly personality. Everyone is now looking forward to another seminar with Master Yang next year!
Seminar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
A Traditional Hand Form seminar with Master Yang Jun was held November 15-17 in Rio de Janeiro. The seminar was organized by Márcio Lacerda (Center Director of the Rio de Janeiro YFTC Center and disciple), his wife Carla Rocha (Center Director), and disciple Davi Garritano.
Instructor Seminar in São Paulo, Brazil
An instructor seminar with Master Yang Jun was held November 19-21 in São Paulo. Instructors deepened their knowledge of tai chi theory and practice to improve their teaching. The seminar was held at Zhi Jing Xuan, a training center built by Angela Soci and Roque Severino (Directors of YFTC Center in São Paulo) about 40 km outside the city.
Tai Chi Helps Veterans
The Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System (CAVHS) provides health and wellness opportunities for Veterans. Cindy Frusha (disciple of Master Yang Jun) has been teaching tai chi to Veterans through this program and the success of one of her students provides a wonderful example of how tai chi can help improve health. Mr. Albert Miller started taking tai chi classes about 3 months ago. At first, he needed a cane to walk and stand so he started with seated tai chi. Over time he has been able to stand for most of the hour-long class. Now he is able to walk around the parade field with Cindy, which is about a half mile, the longest distance he has been able to walk in years.
CAVHS recently published a 2-minute video that includes Cindy and Albert Miller talking about tai chi.
Tai Chi Demo in Iran
On November 14, Tehran Yang Family Tai Chi school students led by Morteza Moradi (disciple of Master Yang Jun), demonstrated Yang Family Tai Chi's Traditional Hand Form at a public event in Tehran, Iran to introduce tai chi to the public. This day is World Diabetes Day. Studies have shown the benefits of tai chi in controlling some of the symptoms associated with diabetes.
Seminar and Ranking Event in Madagascar
In early November, Duc Nguyen Minh and Carole Nguyen Minh (Directors of the YFTC Center in Paris, France) with the support of Hughes Raharimanantsoa (Director of the YFTC Center in Antananarivo, Madagascar) led a seminar in Madagascar that included hand form, saber, sword and push hands. They also held a ranking event for levels 1-4. It was a very intensive learning experience for students and they accomplished a lot in a few days!
Tai Chi Classes with Paula Faro
On September 27, Paula Faro, Academy Instructor and disciple of Master Yang Jun participated in an event held by SESC Campinas where she taught two tai chi classes and gave a talk on tai chi. Campinas is one of the largest cities in the state of São Paulo. SESC is a social service organization with branches across Brazil that promotes cultural and sports events activities.
Paula will open a new class schedule for Yang Family Tai Chi hand form beginning January 13, 2020.
Seminar with Rubén Coirini
On September 28-29, Rubén Coirini taught an Essential Form seminar in the city of Paraná in Argentina. The seminar was sponsored by Shen Chi School. Thank you to Director Miguel Dellacasa and all the participants.
Ruben is the director of the Wu De School, a YFTC School in Rosario, Argentina. On October 26 his school sponsored a ranking event. Thank you to all the participants and the judges.
Seminars with Angela Soci
Angela Soci, Director of the YFTC Center in São Paulo, Brazil has been busy teaching numerous seminars:
São Paulo: Angela developed a program at Sirio Libanês Hospital in the city of São Paulo where she offers Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan for doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff. In October, she and her husband Roque were invited to give a special lecture to the hospital's medical students, explaining the health benefits of tai chi chuan and also teaching them some tai chi chuan movements.
Recife, Brazil: Hand form and push hands seminar in October.
University of São Paulo: Angela partners with the university to develop a specialization course in a two-year program (Post Graduation Course on Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan).
Mendoza, Argentina: Hand form seminar and instructor seminar (practice and theory) in September.
Joinville, Brazil: Students in her instructor course, a 15-month program in practical training and theory.
Seminar in February at Angela and Roque's place called Zhi Jing Xuan, space to develop Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan.
Montevideo, Uruguay: Seminar in May.
Cuiabá, Brazil: Hand form seminar in October.
Join Our Association
Become a member of Yang Family Tai Chi! For more information about membership benefits and how to apply, please visit our membership page on our website.
Journal Gem
"Relaxing Into Form" by Serena Newhall. Spring (2005), Issue #16, pages 10-13. READ
Previous Issue
Did you miss the last issue of Connections? You can read it here. All back issues are now posted on our website.
Next Issue of Connections
Carolyn Fung, Editor
Connections is published in March, June, September, and December. We publish association news and school news (upcoming events, recent past events, awards, other news) but not general school advertisements.
The next issue of Connections will be published in March 2020. Please send any announcements to me at carolyn@yangfamilytaichi.com by February 16, 2020.
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