Huo Yuanjia and the Chin Woo Association

Huo Yuanjia was a real life hero, who inspired mythic tales about his life.  His life and expoloits have been the basis of films starring Bruce Lee and Jet Li.  The real Huo Yuanjia defeated many foreign fighters, when China was being victimized by other countries in the late 1800s and early 1900s.  His exploits were a source of pride at a time, when China was at a low ebb in its history.

Huo Yuanjia was born on January 18, 1868.  He was the son of a martial arts instructor, who did not want his son to train in martial arts.  Huo Yuanjia would observe his father teach during the day and practice with his tutor at night.  He eventually became exceptional.

The family first learned of Huo Yuanjia’s skill, in 1890, when a martial artist beat his brother, who had been trained by his father.  Huo Yuanjia fought the victor and won.    He was 22 years old.

Huo Yuanjia then defeated a Russian wrestler, several Chinese martial artists and an English boxer by the name of Hercules O’Brien.

Hercules O’Brien ran several insulting articles in local newspapers challenging local fighters to a match.  O’Brien was an intimidating looking man but Huo Yuanjia took up the challenge.

 Huo Yuanjia and Hercules O’Brien argued over the rules for several months before they finally agreed that the first person knocked down would be the loser.  Depending on the source, it appears that Huo Yuanjia knocked O’Brien down and took the victory.  Some versions claim that O’Brien no showed.  We do know Huo Yuanjia won one way or the other.

Huo Yuanjia established the Chin Woo Athletic Association around 1900.  He focused on teaching martial arts, exercise and diet for overall health improvement and protection.  The Chin Woo Association still exists to this day.

On August 9, 1910, Huo Yuanjia passed away at the age of 42.  For years, many people speculated he was poisoned.  The motive for the poisoning theory was his defeat of all the foreign fighters.  In 1989, his body was exhumed and his sternum did have the tell-tale black marks from arsenic poisoning.

 However, Huo Yuanjia was treated for jaundice and tuberculosis in the decade prior to his death.  One of the ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine at this time was arsenic.  Huo Yuanjia was just as likely to have been killed by the medicine as he was to have been deliberately poisoned.

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