Si-Fu Julian's Wing Tsun Journey: The Story So Far

When he first experienced Wing Tsun at 15, Si-Fu Julian Hitch knew he had found his calling. Although he was not a natural, one teacher called him a "terrible beginner", he persevered and at 18 became the youngest person in the UK to achieve the 1st Technician (2nd Dan black belt equivalent). He also taught others, producing two black belt instructors one year later. By the age of 21, he had over 100 students, was running two martial arts schools and completing his history degree. At 24 he became the youngest person in the world to achieve his 4th Technician. He was also awarded a scholarship by Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn, becoming a Barrister in July 2009.

A serendipitous meeting took Si-Fu Julian to Hungary. There he met Grandmaster Máday Norbert who adopted him as his first and only western ‘To-dai’ (‘student, son’). With this new found support and determined to progress, Si-Fu Julian became a beginner again, diligently learning the ancient traditions and principles of the one of the purest forms of Wing Tsun. His dedication to his craft was so exemplary that, in 2011, his school became the first independent western school to perform at the ancient Shaolin Temple, the Forbidden City and other sites of great significance and beauty across China. They also broke a Guinness World Record. Based on this experience, Si-Fu Julian wrote his first book Wing Tsun returns to the Shaolin Temple which was launched by fellow Wing Tsun fan Benjamin Zephaniah.

Si-Fu Julian and Benjamin Zephaniah at the launch of Wing Tsun returns to the Shaolin Temple

In 2005, Si-Fu Julian started working with close protection (body guard) services. In a pioneering manner, he utilised the Wing Tsun principles to create third party defence and anti-hijacking programmes. 

Soon after, Si-Fu Julian became a Military Close-Quarter-Combat consultant and created specialist training programmes for military personnel in combat, along with anti-terrorist and hostage situations. This helped soldiers maximise the chance of success in combat and decrease the risk of unnecessary violence. Building on this knowledge, he trained as a counter-terrorism instructor in 2009. His specialist military knife-fighting methods were featured on the programme Ancient Black Ops: Ismaili Assassins.  

In response to the London Riots of 2011, Si-Fu Julian created a training programme that taught UK Police personnel how to subdue people quickly and effectively by using legal and proportionate force.

Si-Fu Julian Hitch is now turning his attention to business, providing specialist consultancy for CEOs and senior management. In 2015 he began working with John Vincent MBE, CEO of healthy fast food chain Leon. Together they pioneered the ‘Kung Fu Barista programme', significantly improving speed and quality of the coffee, whilst reducing barista’s stress levels. He is now working with Leon to create a teaching programme for all 700 team members to learn Wing Tsun and co-writing a book with John Vincent based on their experiences titled Winning not Fighting.