Jorge Elias Pérez Rubio interview, the most internationalized athlete of the school Shaolin Kung Fu The Dragon Dance

Where did your motivation and interest in Wu-Shu / Kung-Fu come from?

My motivation came from the Wu-Shu / Kung-Fu movies and series, at a very young age I was already seeing martial arts movies and a series called Kung-Fu. At 5 years old, I asked my mother to take me to a martial arts academy because I was interested in learning. After going through several different karate academies, Taekwondo and Kung-fu, they finally took me to "Shaolin Kung-fu Chinese the Dragon Dance" School.

Do you think this sport is difficult to train?

It is not a difficult modality; I think that there is no age to begin. The form of training gradually improves your physical skills and psychomotor coordination, strength, elasticity and memory. I can say it is one of the most complete modalities.

Has this mode brought you closer to the Chinese culture?

Certainly yes, this interest grew a lot after my first visit to China in 2006, in a competitive environment.

Did you have any figure of this art that had aroused a special sense, is it true that you develop a great friendship with your coach and training colleagues?

My master Yunys Zapata was my only master of this sport, today I am his disciple and I continue to train and teach under his tutelage. It is inevitable to establish more than just friendship, your teacher becomes one more father and your colleagues become brothers, for the coexistence and training time. Even today, there is a sense of help and cooperation among all to be always better.

Kung-Fu / Wu-Shu is a method of self-defense, when is it a method of personal defense, and when is it no longer?

For me it is not just a method of personal defense, it is a system of integral growth and at the same time, it is a sports discipline.

What goals did you achieve with this sport?

I am a representative athlete of my school of Chinese martial arts Shaolin Kung-Fu School the Dragon Dance and of Venezuela, with national and international prominence. I participated in five traditional Kung-Fu / Wu-Shu world competitions, in which it was possible to have a total of 3 gold medals, 5 silver medals and 3 bronze medals, and reached the podium in various international, South American championships and other international competitions. Currently living in the United States of America, I have been in high competition for two consecutive years in one of the largest martial arts leagues in the USA called NASKA, where I managed to become champion, during those two years I achieved the title of World Champion in Kung Fu, representing the country where I live now.

How do you feel about representing your country and now representing USA in international competitions?

It is a source of pride for me to have represented Venezuela at the Traditional Kung Fu World Championships in 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2012, and the United States of America in 2017.

When you first became world champion, what was the feeling?

It was a very important moment for me and everyone who follows me, but most of all for my master, who was very proud to see his coaching work recognized at the highest level. This filled me with much joy.

Who are your idols in kung fu?

When I was a child, I had many idols within our martial arts school, however, the most representative is, and always will be, my master Yunys Zapata.

What is the meaning and the contribution that martial arts had to your life?

Training martial arts (Kung fu) was the best thing that ever happened to me. After the success I achieved in Kung Fu, many opportunities came up, now I am in USA representing this country at the highest level and very successful in reaching the podium in representation in the international competitions that I have participated on.

What would you say to a person who does not know this sport to motivate them to start Kung Fu training?

I would explain all the benefits I had in my life, in my health.

Do you have any idea what your future will look like in this sport?

I am already 35 years old. I am in the process of withdrawing at the competitive level. Probably will still participate in the Traditional World Kung Fu Championship of the year 2021 and it will be the farewell to this competition phase of mine.

However, I have also started a new phase of my life as a coach. I recently accepted an invitation to teach a group of children from a Chinese community based in the city where I live.

It is true that in your childhood and adolescence Master João Nelson Gonçalves de Sousa, representative, in Madeira Island, Portugal, of the Chinese School of Martial Arts "Shaolin Kung-Fu the Dragon Dance, has become one of your favourite athletes? Explain to us what you feel now being his idol after triumphing in all these world competitions. What is your opinion when people say you are the Cristiano Ronaldo of Martial Arts, in particular Kung Fu?

Yes, it is true João Nelson was one of my idols in our school, for not only the way he performed the forms / schemes, which were always very good, but also for the excellent combats, because he was always one of the best. I remember in the national competitions, I made sure to stay up late to wait for the adult black belt matches to see João Nelson fight. It is an honour to compare myself with the best footballer in the world.

Now that the school "Shaolin Kung-fu The Dragon Dance" has representation in many countries, how do you feel be seeing Master Yunys Zapata visiting for the first time Europe, specifically Madeira Island, Portugal, where they are organizing various events, side by side with master João Nelson your former training partner?

I am very proud and happy that many people in Portugal can benefit from his teachings because to me, he is really one of the best kung fu masters in the world.