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10 questions to Sifu Hubert Wolf
1. How did you come to Kung Fu?
I am learning martial arts since 1964. First
with Karate, Boxing, Tae Kwon Do. In 1978 I came to Kung Fu. In 1978 Sifu Al Dacascos
and Malia Simo opened the first Wun-Hop-Kuen-Do Kung Fu School in Hamburg, in the Seilerstrasse.
I wanted to know more about it and met the two. I was overwelmed by their strong personalities
that I stayed. The training was very hard, very intense and convey the values of the
Sifu and Simo. This was very important to me and I got aware of what I was missing in other sports.
2. What fascinates you in Kung Fu, unlike other martial arts?
Through the personality of Simo and Sifu I have seen that Kung Fu offers a lot more knowledge,
a lot of different facets and that has fascinated me at that time. And also the training was
very different to other martial arts that I have learned by then: It was hard, Simo
expected very much of us as students, we had many who took a peek two or three times but
perhaps gave up after a month because Simo was very uncompromising in terms of training.
5-6 times a week, every day 3, 4 hours, and so it is no wonder that we had basically the
same training partner almost for the whole time. And that was at the time actually Marc Dacascos
and Emanuel Bettencord, which of course I'm still in contact today. Many famous
martial artists visited, in part from the Kajukenbo system, and of course Sifu Bill Ownes
from which I learned the Eskrima or Sifu Fred King. Drawn by the personality of
Sifu and Simo many guests visited over the years. I can not remember a time where we
had a week with no guests. They came from all over Europe, from all over the world.
Some where Karate coach with the third, fourth, fifth Masters degree or Kung Fu Masters. People
including the Boxing Champion Joe Louis, was also there as a guest for two or three weeks.
They have all learned from us and we had very much exchange. Thus we have an incredibly
wide range of martial artists to learn from. And they all came basically due to Simo and Sifu
3. How was Wun Hop Kuen Do System created?
You have to go back to the history of Kajukenbo.
This is an association of martial arts which was founded in 1947 in Hawaii, by Professor
Imperado, which is one of the teachers of my teacher Sifu Al Dacascos, who founded his
own system in 1968. Namely, Wun Hop Kuen Do.
4. How did you perceive your teacher then?
Well, he was and is an exceptional martial
arts personality which, I believe, in today's world still looking for his equal and if you
see how he moves and what ideas he has, especially in terms of the physical laws in each technique,
then you slowly start, not immediately at the beginning, but years later, what's really
behind it all. But that just shows the diversity of Wun Hop Kuen Do, which facets it has, there
is something for everyone and you learn from the beginning to active and internalize what
is taught there.
5. How is your relationship to Sigung Al Dacascos today?
We know each other for 32 years now and in 32 years there are of course not only wedding
dance, but certainly some ups and downs, but we are in close contact to this day. He visits
once a year and we have a lot of fun. Of course, we also talk about one or the other, sometimes
new technics, things that should be changed, because he also discover new things and we
as well. We are not, as I said, 25 anymore, we are now already active for 30 years and
there is always need to discuss things.
6. When did you realize that you want to teach Kung Fu?
Learning to teach is truly a joy and a lot of fun to this day. Actually Sifu and Simo
is to blame, they had told me in 1979 that I would someday be a good teacher. I have
accepted this at that time until in 1981 Sifu gave me my first group in Bremen, and then
I became a teacher. 1984 came the group in Langenhorn and in 1985 in Rahlstedt. In 1992
we moved with the Langenhorn group here to the Alstertal Sportclub, which is a beautiful
place to train. My students feel very comfortable here.
7. How is your relationship to your students?
It is special, because during these years
you recognizes how the words truth, knowledge, loyalty and honor are filled with life, not
only from the teacher but also by the students. And I have much pleasure in it, that some
Students have been with me for 25 years - I have students like Sihing André example,
who already teach them self. I find great joy,to see the develop of the students. Private,
Professionally, of course, just like in Kung Fu. If they come through the door there can
not immediately be a special relationship. That emerges in the course of the years, because
the teacher checks the students how true are they and the students check the Teacher. One
of my main duties is in the classroom: "Do not believe everything I say!" Criticism,
in my view, still the best fruit. I would not criticize anyone who is not important
to me. But if someone expresses a criticism, he feels close to me that he feels the need
to point something out, because none of us is perfect. So I am glad that I have so many
critical students, who also tell me "Listen Sifu, you have to go in this direction, see
this way, look there!"
8. Kung Fu means "success through hard work." Is it hard to teach young people these traditional values?
No, because the hard work, it refers not only
to Kung Fu, you know, when you coming in with us after a short time which you even get to
do something needs to progress. If they are with us for a while, thy realize that they
can celebrate their own successes and they find out that if they work hard they will
be rewarded too. And they continue to notice that when they work hard, they can apply this
to their work or in school or in their partner relationship, Kung Fu involves much more than kicking and hitting.
9. Can anyone learn Kung Fu?
Yes, because everyone in fact already makes
Kung Fu every day. My job is to show them a way to identify what they have actually
done all these years. This starts when they go shopping for example, how they lift a case
of cola how they carry a shopping bag or how they lift their baby up. Or as they push the
stroller, it is my job to translate all this to Kung Fu. What they already do and how they can use it.
10. Do you think that Kung Fu has a future?
Yes, absolutely! We're only just at the beginning
when you look at the history of Kung Fu, which is older than 3000 years. And I still have
a lot of plans for the future and that of my students, because they are also mature
young women or young men who are standing in life and have their own ideas and these
ideas is what the Kung Fu ultimately never stops. There are always new fields. Among
other things, my small contribution active self-defense what I'm developing. I experience
something new every day, I'm learning by the students. And this urge for knowledge this
curiosity that lies in every man, this is the engine that drives everything. Explore
new fields, things to check, physical laws, different for each techniques. Check what
is truth, examine what knowledge is, what is loyalty. How would you represent it? Questions,
there are so many, more than are probably can be answered in this lifetime. As I said,
Kung Fu considering beeing so old, over 3000 years and I am learning only for 46 years
martial arts, then one can imagine how many questions are still open. And that makes it
so exciting and so beautiful.