Ages 15 & up
Schedule – Monday : 6:30 – 7:30pm, Tuesday : 11 – 12pm, Wednesday 7:30 – 8:30pm, Thursday : 12 – 1pm, Saturday : 11 – 12pm
Wing Chun (or Snake-Crane style), also spelled Ving Tsun or Wing Tsun, is an old Chinese martial art that involves both striking and grappling, specializing in close-range combat. The earliest known mentions of Wing Chun date to sometime around the late 19th century, although some oral traditions hold that in fact it dates back to as early as the 17th century.
Wing Chun incorporates three empty hand forms, Siu Nim Tao, Chum Kiu, and Biu Jee; one wooden dummy form, Muk Yan Jong; and two weapons forms, Baat Jaam Do (butterfly knives) and Luk Dim Boon Kwun (long pole).
Efficiency is one of the core principles of Wing Chun. Students learn to relax so that they might properly develop speed, reduce fatigue, and increase tactile sensitivity and body awareness. Sensitivity to an opponent’s movements allow for trapping, which hinders the opponent’s ability to attack. The center line of the human body is, unironically, at the center of Wing Chun practice; strikes always hue toward the center line, allowing the practitioner to reach the target as efficiently and quickly as possible even as he or she defends from incoming attacks. Thus, attacks and defense occur simultaneously, if not concurrently in Wing Chun, and failed attacks can flow easily into follow-up attacks or flurries.
Sifu Kevin Le’s Wing Chun is from the Jiu Wan (Chiu Wan) branch of Wing Chun. He is a student of Sifu Francis Fong who is a first generation student of Jiu Wan. Sifu Kevin emphasizes self defense during training. He teaches tactics that focus on quickly disabling one or more attackers and escape rather than prolonged one on one street fighting. Class is an hour long and consists of warm up drills, partner drills, and sparring.
The instructor is fantastic. You can tell that he is thoroughly versed in the various martial arts and takes a lot of pride and pleasure in teaching those skills to others. Classes are designed to help you learn and while you are strongly encouraged to do your best, you are not pressured, (as in some schools), to push yourself to the point where you get injured. In addition to learning useful martial arts skills I would strongly recommend Elite Academy to anyone interested in improving their balance, cardio-capacity, and core strength.
I visited several schools all around Atlanta before I decided that Elite Academy of Martial Arts was the school for me. Sifu Kevin Le is an exceptional instructor and his experience in both traditional martial arts and the real world application of them is outstanding. The school and classes are run efficiently and professionally and it really feels like a family. Everyone attending is like-minded in maintaining a safe but learning environment. There are no aggressive egos here and Sifu Kevin genuinely wants his students to grow and be proficient in self defense strategies. I wanted a traditional martial arts school that taught respect and discipline for the art and helped me learn skills to be more aware and confident in protecting myself and I am so glad that I found Sifu Kevin Le and EAMA!