Sam Masich
Internal Arts (Neijiaquan 內家拳)
Master Sam Masich has inspired thousands of students along their path
with his unique interpretation of the Chinese internal martial arts.
His work as a full-time instructor has taken him to over a hundred cities
in Canada, the United States, Mexico, England, Germany, Spain, Italy,
Switzerland, Scotland, and China. Students from around the world have
traveled to study with him in workshops and seminars such as his
annual Summer Push Hands Training Camps held in Vancouver, Canada
and in Berlin, Germany.
Sam Masich was born in Prince George, Canada in 1962. In 1979, he moved to Vancouver where he met his first instructor, Master Brien Gallagher (1939- ), a Yang-style Taijiquan master, Kodokan Judo (柔道) 4th-degree black belt (yondan 四段), and kendo (剣道) 1st-degree black belt (shodan 初段). From ages 18 to 25 Masich studied privately as an indoor student with Gallagher, with a particular focus on the Yang-style Taijiquan full curriculum transmission of Grandmaster Raymond (Yam-Man) Chung (鍾蔭民; 1913- ) who emigrated to Canada in 1962.
Building on the Chung-Gallagher foundation, Masich met and studied with many masters and grandmasters in North America and China, apprenticing with Grandmasters Liang Shou-Yu (梁守渝; 1943 ) and Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming (楊俊敏; 1946- ), both of whom accepted Masich as a formal disciple (tudi 徒弟) in 1989. Other important early influences included Jou Tsung Hwa (周宗樺; 1917-1998) and Yang Zhenduo (楊振鐸; 1926- ). His education also included other styles of taijiquan and Chinese martial arts.
Sam Masich has distinguished himself many times as a gold medalist in national and international level competitions. He was a member of the 1985 Canadian National Chinese Martial Arts Team competing in Xi’an, China, at First World Wushu Invitational Tournament and, in 1994, he was awarded seven gold medals for performances in the Shanghai Oberon Cup. Certified as a competition judge in 1989, Masich has officiated in ‘forms’ (taolu 套路) and ‘push-hands’ (tuishou 推手) competitions in Canada, the United States, and China, including having officiated as as a referee and chief-referee at the push-hands and forms competitions of the U.S.A. All-Taijiquan Championships (1988-2005).
The featured subject of two internationally airing internal martial arts documentaries, Sam Masich has assisted Liang Shou-Yu and Yang Jwing-Ming on several book and instructional video projects on the subjects of taijiquan, xingyiquan, and baguazhang. He has himself has produced more than twenty instructional films on various internal arts subjects. Having served as a martial arts action consultant, trainer and choreographer on television programs (The Highlander, Black Sash) and stage productions (Robin Hood, Extremities) Masich was, for several years, the combat instructor for the National Voice Intensive at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. Sam Masich is also an accomplished singer-songwriter and guitarist with twelve recordings to his credit and has worked with many acclaimed musical artists.
Recognized as one of the ‘100 Extraordinary Chinese Martial Arts Practitioners’ in the world today by the International Wushu Sanshoudao Association, Masich is a certified eighth degree master. He is the creator of the The 5 Section Taijiquan Program, a preparation program for traditional taijiquan that is taught in countries around the world. On July 19, 2016 at Daqingshan, Shandong, China Masich publicly announced The Masich Internal Arts Method (Maxiqi Neijiaquanfa 馬希奇內家拳法) and accepted five formal disciples (tudi), taking on the traditional role of master (shifu 師傅).
