Xing Qi-Lin

Xing Qilin is the fourth-generation descendant of Li Ruidong, the founder of the Lee style tai-chi. He studied civil and martial arts from a young age, and was trained by the third-generation master Zhang Wansheng. At the age of 19, he became a civil and martial arts teacher, before commencing his studies at Beijing Sport University, where he was taught by Professor Zhang Wenguang, a holder of the highest martial arts rank (ninth Duan). In 1977, he started a four-year degree in martial arts at the Tianjin University of Sport under the supervision of Professor Liu Wanfu (winner of the 1953 Chinese kickboxing championships and Chair of the National Arbitration Committee for Martial Arts Competitions). During the 1980s, after graduating with a degree in sports education, he worked as a martial arts instructor in Langfang, Hebei province. In 1986, he received the Golden Lion award at a major national martial arts competition.

In 1987, he was appointed as the Director of Sports at a state-owned petroleum enterprise, and in 2002, he became a Professor of Sports at Hebei Normal University. In April 2003, he became Chief Instructor at the Chinese Wushu International Training Centre. In the same year, he was also offered a professorship at Beijing Union University, and founded the Tian Zhen Yuan tai-chi school together with his wife Dr. Cui Ailing at the site of the former residence of Li Ruidong in Wuqing, Tianjin. Since its founding, the school has taught thousands of tai-chi students and enthusiasts from China and overseas. In 2017, he was invited by the Fitness Qigong Management Centre under the General Administration of Sport to train, before their departure, the professors and Qigong masters who are going abroad. In 2018, he was appointed as a tai-chi expert by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, which he has represented on numerous occasions during visits to Japan, the US, Denmark, Canada, New Zealand and other countries. In 2019, he was given an honorary professorship by the University of East-West Medicine, US.