There was a tradition in the Chinese martial arts that youngsters be taught by teachers of a generation older than their parents'.
Both Yang Shaohou and Wu Jianquan were famous for their "small circle" martial expertise.
More people became aware of tai chi, and the former dynamic of small classes and intensive military instruction of relatively young students became less practical.
[4] In 1953, the nearly fifty-five-year-old Wu was publicly challenged to a fight by the thirty-something Tibetan White Crane stylist Chen Kefu (陈克夫).
The ring was set up as if for a Western boxing match, and there were many rules prohibiting various techniques being used by the fighters; kicks, throws or joint locks, for example.