HISTORY OF NAM WAH PAI
New
Zealand NWP Lineage
World
Nam Wah Pai Headquarters
Grandmaster Sim Poh Huat
10th Degree Gold Belt
Current President and Grandmaster
Master
Steve Kitson
7th Degree Black Belt
Founder and NZ Chief Instructor, 1977 - 1989
Mr
Dennis O'Connor
5th Degree Black Belt
NZ Chief Instructor, 1989 - 2000
Master
Dr Jarrod Haar
7th Degree Black Belt
NZ Chief Instructor, 2000 - Present
Grand
Master Sim Pooh Ho, 10th Degree Gold Belt, established Nam Wah Pai in
Singapore in 1964 with a mix of Tai Chi Chuan, Sing Yi, Pa Kua, Wu Jiao
& Northern Shaolin Art. There are currently Nam Wah Pai
branches throughout the world including Singapore (World Head
Quarters), Malaysia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Germany, Chile, Argentina,
Ecuador, and Japan.
Master Steve Kitson founded Nam Wah Pai in New Zealand in 1979 after
learning Nam Wah Pai in Singapore in 1976 while posted there with the
New Zealand Army. At the
time of his death in 1989 he was ranked 7th degree Black Belt; held the
number three position for World Nam Wah Pai; was the World Nam Wah Pai
Free Sparring Champion; and in
addition to being New Zealand Chief Instructor was also Deputy Chief
Instructor for World Nam Wah Pai. Master Kitson is recognised as one of
New Zealand's greatest martial artists. Nam Wah Pai is a Chinese style
martial art (kung fu), incorporating a very sophisticated and modern
method of self defence designed by Master Kitson.
Master Kitson's deputy, New Zealand Deputy Chief Instructor Dennis
O'Connor became the new Chief Instructor in 1989. At the time of his
retirement in 2000, he had attained the rank of 5th Degree Black Belt
and had continued to expand the New Zealand syllabus particularly
towards Tai Chi and the Alternative Syllabus.
The current New Zealand Chief Instructor is Dr Jarrod Haar, 7th Degree
Master Instructor (the highest rank held by a non-Chinese Instructor in
Nam Wah Pai in the world), who accepted the role of Chief Instructor in
2000 after the
retirement of Dennis O'Connor. Grand
Master Sim Pooh Ho confirmed his role as New Zealand Chief Instructor
and Jarrod was elected on to the World Nam Wah Pai Central Committee,
which oversees the development of Nam Wah Pai worldwide.
Master Haar regularly travels to Singapore where he trains personally
with the Grandmaster Sim Poh Huat, 10th degree Gold Belt. The style and
syllabus of New Zealand Nam Wah Pai continues to grow and evolve, both
from within New Zealand and from continued contact with World
Headquarters.
It is a testament to the legacy of Master Kitson that Nam Wah Pai has
continued to operate throughout New Zealand for over twenty years, with
ten clubs in Tauranga (2 clubs Tauranga & Papamoa), Whangarei, Matakana,
Hamilton, Mangapiko, Lower Hutt, Wellington (2 clubs: Khandallah
& Kilbirnie) and Invercargill.