Barry Pang

Barry Pang, 吴国树 (born 11 August 1951) is an Australian kung fu practitioner and noted Melbourne Australian Chinese entrepreneur who heads the Barry Pang Kung Fu school. The school has been in operation since 1974 and was one of the earliest Kung Fu schools opened in Melbourne, Australia. Barry is involved in the Australian horse racing industry, and was part owner of Melbourne Cup Winner, Fiorente. His son is actor Chris Pang. 
==Early life==
Barry Pang was born in Melbourne Australia to immigrant parents from Canton. He was raised in the Melbourne Suburb of St Kilda, where he attended St Kilda Park Primary and Elwood High School. Pang studied mechanical engineering at Monash University. 
He began studying Tae Kwon at High school and continued practicing until the end of University. Pursuing his martial arts interest in 1973 he travelled to Hong Kong to study Wing Chun kung fu under Wong Shun Leung. Upon returning to Melbourne in he opened one of the early Wing Chun schools in Australia. 
==Accomplishments==
===Martial arts===
Early Martial arts training began in High School with Tae Kwon Do under Jack Rozinszky and then at University where he trained with Yong Dai Cho. In early adulthood Pang began training Chinese Kung Fu with the martial artists who practiced in Melbourne who had learnt in Hong Kong. In 1973 Pang Travelled to Hong Kong to train with Wong Shun Leung. Whilst in Hong Kong he also studied Choy Li Fut with Hom Keung.
In early 1990’s Pang met Wu Hua Tai, a Southern Dragon Kung Fu (Lung Ying) practitioner who was a senior student of Grandmaster Lam Yiu Gwai. Barry Pang and his wife Anne Pang began practicing Lung Ying, Liuhebafa and Tai Chi in addition to Wing Chun. They trained under Wu Hua Tai until his death in 2002. 
In 1977 Pang participated in the formation of the seminal Australian National Kung Fu Federation, as vice president along with William Cheung as the president. The organisation ran the Australasian Kung Fu Championships from circa 1977/1978. These were the earliest Australian full contact tournaments open to all styles of martial arts. Barry Pang was also the first official referee for the Australasian Professional Karate tournaments, which were the forerunner of the open style full contact kickboxing tournaments in the late seventies and eighties.
The Barry Pang Kung Fu Schools expanded rapidly in the 70s in Melbourne CBD and decentralised into the suburbs in the 80s. Students of the school successfully participated in the open tournaments of the period.Barry Pang Schools were also established within Victorian universities. RMIT in 1975 and Melbourne University in 1976. The University clubs expanded into the other Victorian universities in the 90s and branches were opened at LaTrobe, Monash Caufield, Monash Clayton and Swinburne. In 1998 he established the Southern Universities Sports Association (SUSA) Kung Fu championships, which opened martial arts competitions to Victorian universities. The organised tournaments were opened to all styles of martial arts and ran from 1998 to mid-2000’s. In 2001 the actor Chris Pang won his weight division in the tournament. Chris’s training at the club would assist in his later role in Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon 2. In 2002 Pang's student Alastair Boast, helped thwart the Monash University shooting and received a gold medal from Royal Humane Society of Australasia. In 1996 Barry was awarded the Blitz Hall of Fame Kung Fu Tribute Award. 
===Horse racing===
Barry Pang is an identified public figure involved in Australian Horse racing and is an owner of horses who have won group 1 races. Marwong won the Caulfield Guineas in 1987. Pang was a part owner of the Melbourne Cup 2013 winner horse Fiorente under trainer Gai Waterhouse. In 2019 Cape Of Good Hope won the Caulfield Stakes with trainer David Hayes. Barry Pang continues to invest in racing horses.
===Australian art===
In the late 90s, Barry and Anne Pang began an art consultancy firm dealing in Australian fine art called Artpreciation. It dealt primarily with Australian paintings and focussed on improving awareness and furthering investment in the Australian art market. Upon retirement from the art market, The Barry & Anne Pang Collection was auctioned off in 2015.
==Family==
Barry is married to Anne Pang (黄碧瑶) who is also a kung fu practitioner. Anne began training with Barry in 1974 and has received the Tribute Award for Women’s Self Defence Instructor, from Blitz Magazine in 1998. Their two children are Chris Pang (吴育刚), the actor, and John Pang (吴育家). Barry Pang is also related to Bruce Lee with his grandfather being Lee’s Grandfather’s brother.
==Awards==
1996 Blitz Magazine Hall of Fame Kung Fu Tribute Award.
==In the media==
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==References==
==External links==
* Barry Pang on facebook
* Barry Pang youtube channel
* Barry Pang | Elwood College
* Barry Pang on linkedin
* Kung Fu Club - RMIT Link - RMIT University
* Barry Pang Kung Fu Schools - RMIT Kung Fu Club 2018
Category:Living people
Category:Hong Kong martial artists
Category:Australian racehorse owners and breeders
Category:1951 Births
Category:Monash University alumni
Category:Mechanical engineering
Category:Entrepreneurs
Category:People from Melbourne