Schedule
Download the Symposium schedule here. (updated July 1, 2014)
Program
The 2014 Symposium will officially begin with an opening ceremony on Sunday, July 6 in the Spalding University Center Auditorium. During the opening ceremony, the Masters will give brief introductions to their respective styles of Tai Chi. The daily schedule begins on Monday with an early morning practice session that is led by one of the five Masters each day. Breakfast at the campus dining room is followed by a talk on the theory, development and practice by the Master representing each style.
Two Masters’ workshops are scheduled simultaneously each morning and afternoon. One workshop is conducted in the gymnasium at the Spalding University Center and the other in the gymnasium of Presentation Academy. These are within a couple of hundred feet of each other. During registration, Symposium attendees will be assigned a group that will allow everyone to participate in all scheduled workshops with each Master.
Academic sessions are held during the time between the Masters’ workshops. The theme of the academic program for the 2014 Symposium is “Tai Chi and the Brain”. It will feature educational lectures that explore the impact of Tai Chi on brain function. The lectures will be based on original research linking Tai Chi as a prevention or intervention strategy for brain disorders. There is no area of biological science that has equaled the advances achieved in the past decade in the neuroscience of the brain. New developments concerning brain physiology have great relevance to the potential benefits of the practice of Tai Chi. The academic program for the 2014 Symposium will serve to educate participants about current understanding about how our brains develop and function across our life span and the relevance of Tai Chi to brain health.
The academic lectures will present the latest research on neurological disorders such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer ’s disease, Autism and Attention Deficit Disorders. Question/answer and discussion time will be a part of every lecture, giving participants the opportunity to share insights and experiences relating to the various presentation topics. Research team leaders Holly Sweeney-Hillman, Dave Barrett, Sergio Arione and Angela Soci will facilitate the academic presentations and discussions.
Evening events scheduled include the Symposium opening ceremony, a Symposium banquet and an evening panel discussion with the five Masters and researchers. A performance showcase that will feature demonstrations of Tai Chi Chuan by each of the five Masters and a closing friendship party are also scheduled.
Pre-Symposium Workshops
A special part of the Symposium is the addition of pre-Symposium workshops scheduled on Saturday, July 5, 2014. These pre-Symposium workshops are intended to provide those new to Tai Chi the foundation necessary for continued development. These workshops will take place in the Spalding University Center gymnasium from 10:00 AM – Noon and 2:00 – 4:00 PM. They will be taught by Master Han Hoong Wang.
On Sunday July 6, 2014 before the formal opening ceremonies, the International Tai Chi
Chuan Symposium will feature two 2-hour Pre-Symposium workshops with Grandmaster He Youlu. Grandmaster He (pronounced with a soft “e” as in “her”) was born in 1963 in the town of Zhaobao, Wen County, Henan Province. He is the lineal descendant of He Zhaoyuan, the founder of He Style (also referred to as Zhaobao He Style) Tai Chi Chuan. A seventh-duan Chinese martial artist, Grandmaster He is the President of the He Style Tai Chi Chuan Academy in Wen County and is the representative successor of the He Style’s cultural heritage. He is also the Chairman of the He Style Tai Chi Chuan Association in Jiaozuo, Henan Province. It is an honor to have Grandmaster He join us for the 2014 International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.
Qualified Instructor Certification Program
From Sunday to Thursday, there will be five training sessions for the Qualified Instructor Certification Program (QICP). The Qualified Instructor Certification Program has been created to satisfy the demand for capable instructors who can conduct authentic Yang Family 16 Form Tai Chi classes that preserve the essential and unique elements that make Tai Chi a valuable fitness practice.
Special Events
The 2014 Symposium includes special events to bring everyone together in social settings, providing both entertainment and additional opportunities to practice Tai Chi, spend time with old friends and to make new ones.
The Symposium officially begins with a grand opening ceremony on Sunday, July 6. The opening ceremony takes place in the 800-seat auditorium at the Spalding University Center. Monday evening will feature the Symposium banquet at the famous Seelbach Hotel, located just six city blocks from Spalding University. There will be a panel discussion with the Tai Chi Masters and researchers to compare the development of Tai Chi through traditional and modern methods and how both complement each other. A grand showcase will feature demonstrations of Tai Chi hand and weapons forms and push hands by the Masters and others. The Symposium will finish with an informal friendship party at the Muhammad Ali Museum where we will relax and enjoy our time together. The Ali Museum is a partner of the Symposium and will provide everyone with tickets to the museum. There you will enjoy a tour through the Champ’s history, his legendary boxing career and philanthropic activities.