I take this opportunity to “Thank” all of you who send in ballots on my behalf, and to the Black Belt Magazine Editorial Staff for selecting me as the “Kung Fu Artist of The Year”

To be selected for this prestigious award is to be GRATEFUL. Grateful because so many people were involved in the final selection. To be grateful to all my instructors and friends whom I considered mentors and added to my knowledge of martial arts and life. Life and achievements is not a solo act. Whatever we achieve in life is the results of team efforts. As the saying goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

To be selected is to be HONORED. Honored, because my name will appear with other great luminaries and legends of the martial arts of the 20th and 21st century. Each inductee reminds me of what it really takes to achieve goals and quality. No one achieve success in life’s endeavors without making personal sacrifices. It takes the practice of the 3 P’s of success to reach goals set; one must have a Purpose, a Passion and Perseverance

To be selected is to be HUMBLED. Humbled because Martial Arts is an endless journey of learning. No matter how old you are; there is always something to learn, something to discover and something to test. No matter how good you are; there is always someone in the world that can circumvent your skill. The true martial art spirit is never static; rather it is constantly on the move, forward and upward. No single individual can claim to know it all. At best after a lifetime of training; we have only touched the “tip of the iceberg.” To know this is to be humbled. The learning process is infinite. The more we are willing to open our minds in humility, the more knowledge we will gain.

Leo T. Fong