50 years of Wushu in Sri Lanka: a master’s journey
Jayaweera with his mentor William Cheung
On November 3, Sri Lanka saw the coming together of two generations of martial artists who will congregate to honour the man who took them in, and assumed the role of their guide and mentor and shaped their lives under the umbrella of the Chinese martial arts – wushu. This visionary who introduced wushu to Sri Lanka in 1975 is none other than Prasanna Jayaweera, who built this family of Sri Lankan martial artists with his devotion, passion and true love towards the youth of our country.
Jayaweera was a pupil and friend of William Cheung, a direct disciple of the legendary Ip Man. It was Cheung who introduced Bruce Lee to their master, and while Bruce Lee moved to USA for greener pastures, Cheung found his home in Australia where he built a martial arts empire, which is now run by his son, Andrew Cheung.
A tribute programme to him, held in Colombo was organised by his most famous direct student, Tiran ‘Tornado’ Thakshala, an erstwhile fighting champion, a coach, a referee and judge and the founder of Cobra Kai Martial Arts in the UAE, along with his business partner Salem Alameri. Also in attendance were Andrew Garcia, the President of the Hawaii USA MMA Association and Chairman of Star Cage Fighting Championship, as well as members of the National Wushu Academy Board of Directors, and Andrew Cheung, the President of the Global Traditional Wing Chun Kung Fu Federation.
Jayaweera, who brought to Sri Lanka this rich Chinese martial arts system, has had a 50-year-long career nurturing the martial arts dreams of two generations of youngsters in our country. He also has been the beacon that imparted the teachings of Ip Man that he gained through William Cheung and passed on to the youth of our country.
Over the past five decades, Jayaweera’s commitment has helped transform wushu to the present status and a cultural movement in Sri Lanka. He was highly involved as the teacher who helped produce and shape world-class instructors such as Sifu Sajith Jayaweera, the Technical Committee Director and Vice Chairman of GTWKF Sri Lanka, who continues to uphold his father’s vision both locally and globally.
