The Recent Genting Lion Dance Championship Updates

Hi first of all apologize that it has been a very long time since i last updated the lion arts blog. I here by wanted to blog about the updates about the recent genting world lion dance championship. The recent championship was a thrill according to most of them who were there in the arena to participate or to just watch. Many great lion dance teams from different country performed very well. Many fancy dress up, new difficulties, creative story telling are all brought up to be performed in the recent championship. The competition was very very tight that teams are competing for their world titles in just by the difference of 0.01 points. And this year, a new record was created. The longs lasting wolrd championship title that Kun Seng Keng hold for many many years has fallen to other lion dance's team's hand. This year Kedah Hong Teik Lion Dance Team emerge World Champion with many difficulties moves and great lion dance coordination beat KSK by only 0.02 points.
I've been told that KSK Lion Head Performer, By the name of "Little Ghost" injured his wrist badly and can't perform well. But still good job on his effort which still earn KSK a first runner up title.
Congrats to the new world champion who beat 30 world best lion dancers who came and compete.
The Final Score Result

2012 Genting World Lion Dance Championship Results:

Champion: Malaysia Kedah Hong Teik 9.27
1st runner up: Malaysia Kun Seng Keng team D 9.25
2nd runner up: Malaysia Muar Kun Seng Keng 9.22
3rd runner up: Singapore Wei Yong 9.13

Here are some Highlights 

The New World Champion, Kedah Hong Teik

Kun Seng Keng Malaysia

New Paper Publish Highligths http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2012%2F7%2F23%2Fnation%2F11712452&sec=nation

The Kun Seng Keng Boys and Kedah Hong Teik Boys

Malaysia Chinese Cultural Celebration Will Be on international TV Channel

This Year's Chinese New year, I'll be assisting CCTV 4 Channel from china to shoot Lion Dance Footage and sent aired it in their channel. It is a programme about Chinese Cultural Celebration in Malaysia. Will be Lived on the 3rd day of Chinese New Year in Malaysian CCTV4 Channel.
So dont miss it.

Mean While, Another breakthrough in the Local Film Making Industry about CHinese New Year Movie, Comes another heart warming movie after last year " WooHoo" Tiger Dance

I've Went for the premiere after getting 2 tickets from Master Siow. Here in Review

Tiger Dance is gaining much popularity

TIGER Beer stamped its mark with a gala event at KL Live in Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, recently.

The official beer for the Year of the Tiger Campaign announced plans for a winning start with a series of festive promotions.

The Year of the Tiger has historically been a year of positive changes and opportunities for those willing to rise to the challenge.

Fascinating: The tiger dance troupe in action at the event.

People born in the Year of the Tiger have always been known to be competent leaders, driven by an unerring drive and ambitious nature.

Similarly, the story of Tiger Beer’s ascension mirrors its namesake’s characteristics, having risen from a popular local beer first brewed in 1932, into a brew now available in more than 70 countries, while winning over 40 international brewing awards along the way.

Having already launched their Year of the Tiger campaign on Nov 18, last year, an auspicious 88 days before the advent of the year, it has also introduced a series of consumer promotions.

The Win Gold promotion, which kicks off at selected coffee shops nationwide will see drinkers who buy two big bottles of Tiger, Heineken or Guinness receiving a Tiger Lucky Number scratch card, which puts them in the running to win lucrative prizes worth RM2.5mil, including a 2kg solid gold bar worth RM250,000.

Additionally, the festive period will see the availability of special 26-can Tiger Beer Prosperity Packs at supermarkets and hypermarkets nationwide.

A team: Koh (left) and Guinness Anchor Berhad managing director Charles Ireland at the event.

Consumers who buy a Prosperity Pack will receive one of four different Tiger Prosperity Bowls, with those buying from Tesco or Giant outlets also receive a limited edition Year of the Tiger commemorative coin.

There will also be 68 Tiger Night events held across the country, providing the patrons of bars, pubs and coffee shops with live music entertainment, interactive games and great prizes for a winning start to the Lunar New Year.

Tiger Beer marketing manager Sean Koh said as the official beer for the Year of the Tiger, it is an honour and privilege to reward loyal consumers.

“With the Lunur New Year around the corner, let’s all look forward with confidence and anticipation for a prosperous year.”

Guests, including members of the media and local celebrities, at the event had the privilege of witnessing an exclusive Tiger Dance performance, a traditional Chinese cultural dance that ushers in prosperity and good luck while warding off bad luck.

“The auspicious Tiger Dance performance will be making its rounds in the run-up to the Lunar New Year, with about 50 performances throughout Malaysia,” Koh said.

Local feng shui master Joey Yap was also present to share his views on the coming Year of the Metal Tiger.

“The Year of the Tiger has historically been a year for improvement not just in business but on a personal level as well.

“I am confident that those who want to succeed will be able to do so by adopting the characteristics of the tiger in everything that they do.

“These characteristics are passion, courage, strength and determination,” he said.

The Tiger Dance Leapes In

The Year of the Tiger brings with it an exciting tiger dance.

Just as Tiger Beer has always been associated with winning, the Year of the Tiger is a year that is geared towards renewed prosperity, accomplishment and all-around success.

With the new lunar year just around the corner, one can expect the celebrations to soon intensify. One celebration that is bound to catch the eye is the tiger dance, which is making its début in the country this year.

Introduced by Master Siow Ho Phiew, the tiger dance will complement the other long-established dances of Chinese New Year, the lion and dragon dances.

So what is the story behind this new dance?

Well, it’s actually not such a new dance. The tiger dance originated centuries ago in China. It has a style and choreography that is similar to the lion dance. Tigers have long been regarded as a majestic symbol of authority and is sometimes even revered as a deity, being dubbed the “God of Wealth”.

Tigers are believed to bring financial luck, so it’s no surprise that the tiger dance is much sought after during the start of the lunar new year as a symbolic way to ward off bad luck and spirits, and to usher in safety, prosperity and a successful year.

According to one source, the tiger dance originated about 300 years ago in the village of Lo Wu in Hainan. The village was at the time ruled by a celebrated female leader, Madam Xi. One of the ceremonies conducted whenever the local militia was about to leave the village for an expedition was the tiger dance.

Madam Xi and her troops were widely praised for restoring peace to Hainan, petitioning for governance in the town of Ya Zhou, and bringing new agricultural technology to the village.

To commemorate Madam Xi’s achievements, the villagers later made a habit of re-enacting the tiger dances performed during the launching of her military expeditions.

As with the lion dance, most tiger dance performances feature a pair of tigers, usually with two skilled martial arts exponents operating each tiger. The tiger dance starts off with the symbolic dotting of the eyes to “bring it (the tiger) to life”.

During the dance, the two tigers face off in a mock display of aggression with acrobatic movements that mimic those of actual tigers. The dancers’ athletic prowess, martial art skill and coordination are what count.

Not surprisingly, the tiger dance is visually striking.

Just as in the lion dance, the tiger dance usually makes use of props such as pillars and platforms on which the tigers negotiate and leap as they spar. This year, for the first time ever, the tiger dance is making its début in Malaysia to commemorate the Year of the Tiger, courtesy of Tiger Beer.

Be sure to look out for it.

Tiger début

The tiger dance was brought to Malaysia by Master Siow Ho Phiew who trained the first troupe here three months ago.

According to him, “Before this, the tiger dance was not known at all in Malaysia, as we already have the lion and dragon dances. However, with the Year of the Tiger around the corner, it’s a great time for the tiger dance to make its début.”

Where will the tiger dance be performed?

The tiger dance is featured in a local Chinese movie sponsored by Tiger Beer called Woohoo! which is about a group of young men who train in the art in order to perform at a special ceremony held once every 60 years.

The dance has featured in a number of Tiger Beer’s Year of the Tiger launches. There will be more such performances in numerous locations across the country including Penang, the Klang Valley, Ipoh, Ma lacca and Johor Baru.

Is the dance being adapted to Malaysia?

“A majority of the moves from the tiger dance have been improvised. It makes sense for us to try new styles and techniques in the creation of Malaysia’s first tiger dance. If I only followed what has already been done, there would be no creativity or innovation,” says Master Siow.

o Tiger now sports a new vibrant look that reflects its acclaimed status. Tiger has won admirers from around the world since 1932 with its distinctive clean and crisp taste.

It has won more than 40 international medals, including the prestigious Brewing Industry International Award.

Genting 14th National Single and First Double Lion Dance Championship

The Video is finally out for purchase. Get them to spice up your chinese new year atmosphier
Preview the video below.



Purchase them at This Link

News On Recent Genting Nationals Copetition

ONE would have thought that winning another national lion dance championship would be easy for someone who had 19 world and 10 national titles under his belt.

But Si Tiam Yong, from Kun Seng Keng Lion and Dragon As­­sociation Muar, begged to differ. The victory, he said, was an exceptionally meaningful one for him and his partner Chong Kok Fu.

“After two previous attempts, this is the first time we are bringing home the champion’s trophy of this biennial Malaysia National Lion Dance Championship,” the 21-year-old said.

This accomplishment might help him put away the memories of his bitter experiences at the Arena of Stars in Genting Highlands, especially an accident that happened in 2006.

Breakout!: The dramatic opening of the performance by the Kun Seng Keng Lion and Dragon Association Muar troupe, which had the lion breaking through a cage.

“I fell from a pole during a practice session two months before the competition, and was forced to take a break for a month,” recalled Si, who controlled the lion head.

It was sheer determination and a strong passion for the art that had spurred Si for a decade, while Chong, on the other hand, revealed that he was addicted to the thrill of the challenge.

“I take pleasure from the audience’s excitement when they are awed by the new moves we have invented,” the 24-year-old said.

In the 14th championship held at the Arena of Stars in Genting Highlands last weekend that drew 40 lion dance troupes, the Kun Seng Keng team received thunderous applause from the crowd with its “backward handstand” move.

“The hind legs of the lion were lifted while its front legs moved backwards,” Chong said.

The other seven teams put up equally stunning performances in the finals, although three teams lost significant marks due to accidental falls. Nevertheless, all three of them climbed back up the high poles and completed their routines, to the delight of the crowd that cheered them on encouragingly.

Good coordination: The two lions of the Subang Khuan Loke Dragon and Lion Dance Association Selangor interacting with each other on the high poles.

There was also a handful of Malay and Indian team members amid the Chinese-dominated troupes.

Young Bakri Anwar was one of them. The 13-year-old hit the gong for the Petaling Jaya Khuan Loke Dragon and Lion Dance Association Selangor, which emerged the third runner-up.

The pint-sized SMK Sri Utama student, who had participated in three lion dance competitions so far, said he was introduced to the troupe by his Indian friend a year ago.

“This is my first medal and I am proud of my team’s achievement,” he said.

When probed further, Bakri admitted shyly that he harboured dreams of becoming a lion dancer one day.

Sponsored by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Cotra Enterprise, the championship was also the first ever that incorporated the Double Lion category, in which two lions strutted their stuff in the court simultaneously.

Albert Fong, the coach of the champion team – Subang Khuan Loke Dragon and Lion Dance Association Selangor – said the most difficult part was to coordinate the interactions between the two lions.

The team’s highly dynamic performance started off with the two lions breaking through a box. They then embarked on a journey in the “mountains” (poles) in search of the cheng (a flower attached to a pole).

“One found it and happily shared it with the other,” Fong said.

The three-day event ended on a high note with Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Senator Heng Seai Kie, Resorts World Genting public relations and communications senior vice-president Datuk Anthony Yeo and Selangor & Federal Territory Lion Dance Association chairman Leong Lik Thong jointly presenting a mock cheque for RM10,000 to the Kun Seng Keng team.

Kwong Ngai Lion Dance and Persatuan Seni Goh Chor Wushu Tarian Singa Segamat won RM6,000 and RM3,000 respectively for emerging first and second runners-up.

Article Pick By Local News Paper http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2009/11/25/central/5166519&sec=central

The Highlights Of Genting 14th Single Lion and 1st Double Lion National Competition

THESE IMAGES BELOW ARE ALL SHOT IN HIGH RESOLUTION WITH A NEW DIGITAL SLR, TO GET THE BEST QUALITY VIEW OF EVERY PICTURES, JUST CLICK ON THEM





On The Left, Image Shot with 50mm 1:1.8 Lens






The Preliminary 1 highlights

KSK Worship Altar to get blessing--------------------------------The Competition Ground

Kwong Ngai, Lion Tail Spinning 360 Degree

KSK on Fut Shan Lion Performance--------------Kwong Ngai Training After Preliminary 1

LionDonceFreak In Action. The one on the foreground not those 2 on the jong





The Preliminary 2 highlights

Special Thanks to Miss Amy Lu on contributing some photos to this post

(Left) Segamat Gor Chor (Right) Selayang Hong Teck
Photo Shot By : Amy Y.F. Lu

























KSK In Action. This time playing with new toy, The Hula Hoop
Photo Shot By : Amy Y.F. Lu















Chinese Sports Club Selangor
Photo Shot By : Amy Y.F. Lu

Stay Tuned For Image Highlights On Finals