Wing Tsun is self-defense. Many people do not know the difference between ring fighting and self-defense. If something doesn’t work in the ring, they exclude it as being ineffective. In ring fighting, there must be rules. The sponsors do not want somebody to get VERY seriously hurt if it can be avoided, despite the full contact nature of ring fighting. Ring fighters do get hurt on regular basis, but rarely do they get blinded with eye pokes, throats chopped, killed, or incapacitated except by knockout. The goal is usually a knockout.

On the street, if somebody must defend themselves, they are not likely going to be wearing boxing gloves, sparring gloves or other gloves meant for the ring. They are not going to be wearing a groin protector or any kind of chest protection or head protection.

In a street confrontation, there are no rules. The rules in the ring do not allow strikes on the soft areas of the body. In Wing Tsun training, strikes, palms, and kicks are intended to land on soft areas such as the throat, base of the skull, knee joints, eyes, etc. The rules of fighting contests do not allow the best self-defense effectiveness.

The very philosophy of Wing Tsun is to keep yourself standing. Once on the ground, a weaker person is at a tremendous disadvantage. That is why we in Wing Tsun place so much emphasis on balance, a flexible, sturdy stance and footwork. Therefore, unlike some martial arts that train more for contests than real life, we do not go to the ground on purpose. In addition, the ground outside the training hall is full of hazards, like curbs, glass, gravel, sticks, etc.

Wing Tsun is a serious self-defense system so that if your life is in danger or you are in danger of serious bodily harm, you, the defender, have the right under most legal systems to use the amount of force necessary to stop the attack. Many legal authorities believe judges and juries are more lenient when a woman must defend herself against a serious attack.

As I said in another blog, Wing Tsun like some other sophisticated martial arts, is designed for the defender to escape serious harm, then run. If you must spar, you should be running.