Madam Cynthia Rothrock, perhaps not telling you anything, was one of the hottest actresses in fight movies in the ’80s and ’90s, along with Michelle Yeoh. Her Facebook fan page has around 10,000 members, which isn’t too bad, but if you type her name in on YouTube, you’ll see a series of movie scenes that have often been watched more than a million times worldwide, based primarily on comments with men’s longing.
Rothrock has acted in more than sixty films. At the age of 65, she divided her attention between acting in Hollywood and the seminars she gives around the world. What Bruce Lee, John Woo and Wong Kar-wai stand for for martial arts icons, Cynthia Rothrock for women. In 2016, she became the first female martial artist to be inducted into the prestigious International Sports Hall of Fame by Arnold Swarzenegger and Robert Goldman.
How IMAF, with its registered office in Massenhoven, managed to attract her for an internship at Sint-Job, or all places? “I have good contacts with her,” says Jean-Pierre van Frey from Saint Antonius, who has had his own school for 32 years and is also a much sought-after teacher abroad. “I knew she was on a tour to give training courses in Europe and she had to be in Germany. The training day at my defense school takes place in the Het Veen gymnasium, which is beautifully decorated in an oriental style. All ages can participate, but you have to be absolutely dexterous. , because at the age of 65 Cynthia Rothrock is still very careful and smart. She still does without overdoing a Grand Eckart Or stamp her foot on your head before you know it. We are taking enough breaks, but those in a greater recession can also turn up as spectators.”
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What makes starting a fight in a movie different from a regular seminar? “Of course there is a lot of acting. Cynthia herself has lived in Hong Kong for a while. She has dual citizenships of the American and Chinese. She is highly regarded as a teacher.”
To replicate her status, the martial arts queen is a character in human kombatWell-known computer game. “Technically Cynthia Rothrock is very strong. She was a five-time world champion in karate in kata and weapons between 1981 and 1985 and holds a black belt in various disciplines such as taekwondo,” says Van Frey.
She was an scout from Hong Kong film studio Golden Harvest who was looking in the United States in 1985 for a successor to Bruce Lee, who offered her a contract for her first film: police killers, in which she co-starred with action star Michelle Yeoh. Her most famous films are China O’BrienFilms in 1990 and 1991. She was also probably the first white actress not to play a villain in a Hong Kong film and the first woman on the cover of Karate magazine.
IMAF’s ultimate dream was to suddenly bring Jean-Claude Van Damme, who knows Cynthia Rothrock, to Saint Job. “His parents live in Knokke and he often visits them. But this does not work out,” says Jean-Pierre van Frey.
Those who want to experience the unforgettable start of Fight Seminar can visit the sports hall at Camping Het Veen at Eekhoornlaan 1 in Sint-Job-In-‘t-Goor on September 17th. IMAF members pay €30, while non-members pay €40. The day starts at 10 AM and runs until 4:30 PM.
Register via imaf-belgium.be, [email protected] or 0475-31.12.22
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