Yip Man Biography

Yip Man, also known as Ip Man, was a martial arts master and teacher, best known for making the practice and instruction of Wing Chun popular. Brought up in an affluent family, he was very intelligent and, because of his family's wealthy status, well-educated. He spent his early life as a police officer, teaching Wing Chun privately. As the Chinese Communist party came to power in the mid-1900s, political turmoil upended his life and career as a police officer, forcing him to move to Hong Kong to escape prosecution. He turned to the art of Wing Chun to create a new life for himself. Opening the first public school of Wing Chun, business grew slowly and was difficult to maintain until a young Bruce Lee came to train with him. His career took off as Lee became famous for his TV shows and movies; his school and training program began to grow rapidly. Lee remained a close friend through the rest of Yip's career. Although Yip faced several personal challenges during his career, he ultimately achieved prosperity and left a long legacy. As a pioneer of Wing Chun, he has left an indelible mark on the history of martial arts.