San Cheen DoA Singaporean martial arts institute, established 1972.
San Cheen Do Institute is a Singaporean martial arts school established in 1972 by its Chief Instructor, Grandmaster Teo Choon Teck (赵春德师傅). Since its inception, classes have been conducted in constituencies throughout Singapore — training members for self-defence and combat sports.
Many members won medals in wushu and sparring tournaments, representing the institution and Singapore across Asia. Within two decades of its founding, the school had grown to over 6,000 students from all walks of life, with 50 "inner-circle" black belters.
The Teo BrothersGrandmaster Teo Choon Teck was the premier founder; his younger brother Teo Teck Huat, the co-founder. Together the brothers ensured the creation, consolidation and growth of San Cheen Do — thousands of students, and an inner circle of fifty black belters who carried the art forward.
太祖拳 · Fujian HeritageThe martial art taught in San Cheen Do is Taizu quan 太祖拳 — a rare and ancient Chinese art brought to Fujian by the Song imperial family when the capital moved south during the war with the Mongols.
As a coastal province, Fujian was constantly harassed by pirates during the Ming Dynasty; practitioners defended their land using everyday objects and farming tools — which is why such weaponry still lives inside San Cheen Do. During the Qing Dynasty the art was used to prepare troops quickly and practically. That is its signature: to train an effective fighter in a short time.