Wu Gongyi
Wu Gongyi (; 1898–1970) was a well-known teacher of the soft style martial art tai chi in China, and, after 1949, in British Hong Kong. He was also the "gate-keeper" of the Wu family from 1942 until his death in 1970. Biography Wu Gongyi was the grandson of the founder of Wu-style tai chi, Wu Quanyou. Wu Quanyou's son, Wu Jianquan, became the best known teacher in his family, and is therefore also considered the co-founder of the Wu-style. Wu Gongyi was his eldest son. Wu Gongyi's younger brother and sister, Wu Kung-tsao and Wu Yinghua, were also well-known teachers. The Wu family were originally of Manchu ancestry. There was a tradition in the Chinese martial arts that youngsters be taught by teachers of a generation older than their parents'. Since Wu Quanyou had died while Wu Gongyi was an infant, he and his brother were taught as young men by Yang Shaohou, who was technically a generation senior to their father. Both Yang Shaohou and Wu Jianquan were famous for their "small circle" martial expertise. The motions of tai chi forms and pushing hands are all based on different sized circles, small circle movements in the forms and applications