The Lau Gar Guardians are pleased to announce the new appointment of Frankie Cooper as a Guardian of Lau Gar. Frankie is pictured receiving the coveted Guardian Sash from Master Yau and now joins the elite group of Guardians who seek to honour and protect the style for current and future generations.
Frankie, who is based in Suffolk, began his training in Lau Gar in 1978 in Berkshire. Whilst training in Brighton in 1980 he met Carl Jones, who he has trained with regularly since.
Frankie’s interest quickly moved from the tournament scene to the more traditional aspects of Lau Gar and subsequently Carl introduced him, as a Green sash, to John Russell who agreed to allow him to attend his legendary monthly Brown & Black sash lessons in Bristol where he first heard the immortal phrase “what’s the matter; is your face hurting?” and was introduced to the concept of drills and repetitions! At this time he was also training regularly in London and Berkshire.
Through John’s lessons he met Andrew Nation who dedicated a tremendous amount of time developing Frankie’s Kung Fu both in classes and on a one to one basis. After achieving his 1st Degree he travelled with Andrew to Birmingham for lessons under John Russell and Master Yau whilst continuing to train with Andrew, Carl and John in his monthly lessons. He has also been a regular on the Summer Courses for many years.
Frankie now attends weekly lessons with Andrew, Carl, Jason Crabtree and Rash Patel in Wales and the South West, in addition to travelling to Birmingham for lessons with John Russell and Master Yau. He currently teaches private lessons to black sashes and helps with classes and courses.
Frankie has a keen interest in all martial arts having experienced various disciplines and his main interests now centre around the practical applications of the Lau Gar sets, sticking hands, power generation, advancing in the internal aspects of the style and the history of Southern Kung Fu styles, in particular those with Hakka influences.
He has enjoyed training with the Guardians and is looking forward to being an active and productive member of the team.