Sifu Richard A. Omura
“Practicing Tai Chi is like climbing a mountain. Once you reach the top of one, you can see the tops of so many others waiting for you to climb. Always be searching for a new mountain to climb.” ~Master Richard Omura
Some people are born with an innate and irrepressible desire for self-improvement. Fewer are born with a natural ability to both inspire and encourage that spark in others. Master Richard Omura is one of them—a born teacher, and a true competitor. He has accumulated an impressive list of accomplishments in his life, which few people know. In person, he is much more inclined to tell you about his next goal, regale you with stories of his incredible life experiences, or make you laugh with his insights into human nature, than to talk about his past successes.
He began training with the Ji Hong Tai Chi & Wushu College in Edmonton in 1993, and by 1996, he was competing in, and winning, Martial Arts Competitions across Canada and the U.S. By 1997 he had been selected for the Canadian National Wushu Team (competing in San Shou in Italy) and he followed the honor up with a second selection in 1999 (competing in San Shou in Hong Kong). In 2002 and 2005 he won consecutive gold medals at the most prestigious and challenging competition in China (the Jiaozuo International Taiji Exchange Competition, near Chen Village, the founding place of Chen Style Tai Chi). He outperformed over 50 competitors in his weight category for the honor, (including local students who studied Chen Style Tai Chi descended directly from the founders of the Chen Family).
During this time, his Sifu’s (Master Luo & Master Gu) recognized his deep understanding of Ji Hong Tai Chi Principles, and his unique ability to express the complex ideas in a way that was easily understood, by giving him his first teaching assignment at the school’s main branch in Edmonton. Richard very quickly embraced his new position. Teaching revealed even more to him about the techniques and allowed him to further improve his own practice, but it was the thrill of seeing the lights turn on in his students’ eyes as they learned, understood and became more successful at becoming “connected & balanced” that propelled Master Omura forward to even bigger goals. He felt compelled to open a Ji Hong Tai Chi Branch in Vancouver, so that more people would have access to the (many times over) proven success of the Ji Hong Tai Chi System, or what he simply calls “Real Tai Chi.”
In September of 2012 Master Omura began teaching classes in the Vancouver area. With all his Tai Chi success, he is the first to tell you that Tai Chi still offers him a great challenge, 20 years later. There is always more to learn. There are always areas in which you can improve. Forever be a student and never stop learning. It is this challenge that he would like to share with his students:
“Climb that first mountain, and always be searching for the next mountain to climb.”
-Master Richard A. Omura
