For those who don’t know martial art is a variety of fighting sport that is learned and practice for various reasons that include fitness, relaxation, self-defense, and to boost one confidence. One who practices or trains in martial arts is called as a martial artist. There are many forms of martial arts— punches that include karate and boxing, kicks that include kickboxing and Taekwondo, and some throws and holds that include wrestling and judo.
The combination of some of these elements together is what is classified under two main categories that are soft martial arts and hard martial arts. The one that is less aggressive with the opponent while fighting is known as soft martial arts and it is mainly about forcing their open end to surrender to them. Whereas the one that includes beating your opponent in a very hostile manner is called as hard martial arts. There are so many talented and renowned martial artists all over the world, let us introduce you to the top 10 martial artists in the world:
- Jackie Chan
Now, who doesn’t love this Chinese superstar— he is world-famous for the stunts that he plays in his movies by himself and his acrobatic style of fighting is something people look forward to in his movies. Jackie Chan is globally recognized for his acting and his stunt work in his films. He is known to have brought the age-old Asian martial arts form into mainstream Hollywood cinema. he has received a lifetime achievement award from Taurus world stunt awards.
- Bruce Lee
He is certainly one of the most influential martial artists on the entire globe. he achieved worldwide popularity because of his performance and those commendable moves. he is a Chinese American who is known for his expertise in martial arts and also as a well-known actor, film director, and martial arts instructor as well. he developed a very unique technique which was a blend of boxing fencing and Kung Fu— “Jeet Kune Do”.
- Jet Li
He is a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism and has also won the national championship for his country through the Beijing wushu team. At the tender age of eight, he started taking training at the Wushu Academy and learned various versions of martial arts and its styles. He is also known to have secured nearly five gold medals in various Chinese championships. He is a very popular actor as well in not just the Chinese cinema but also French cinema as well as Hollywood.
- Vidyut Jammwal
He’s probably the only Indian Bollywood actor who is famous for his martial arts. he also performs strenuous stunts on his own in his movies. He is a very proficient martial artist and is known to be trained in a very ancient martial art form known as the Kalaripayattu.
At the tender age of 4, he started training in martial art forms. He started teaching this martial art form in an inventive manner to several college-going girls and also working professionals.
- Wesley Snipes
He’s a very well renowned film producer and an American martial artist. he holds a very prestigious second-degree black belt in the martial art form Hapkido. it doesn’t just end there, he also owns a 5th-degree black belt in Shotokan Karate. His acting skills have made him a very famous personality in the Hollywood industry today.
- Steven Seagal
He comes from a Michigan origin and he’s not just a martial artist but he is also an amazing American actor, musician, producer, and screenwriter. His very first step in his adulthood career was to be a martial art instructor and today he is recognized as one of the best martial artists in the world. He loves staging deputy’s martial art, unarmed combat, and marksmanship.
- Donnie Yen
He hails from Hong Kong and is a multiple-time wushu tournament champion worldwide first stop he is also known to be recognized as one of the top action stunt stars. He gained immense popularity as both of martial artist and as an actor. He has worked as a producer, director, stuntman, and action choreographer. In the world of Action Cinema, Donnie is a leading martial arts choreographer.
We all know how popular the film series IP man is.
- Tony Jaa
He’s a martial artist from Thailand and has studied martial arts at a local temple school where he went on to win a scholarship at a physical education College in Thailand. It is here that he studied Taekwondo and judo world which helped him to establish his name in the martial arts world of fame. Tony says that he got inspired to learn martial arts by watching martial arts films of his idols like Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee. He has worked as a stuntman in the film industry for more than 14 years.
- Jean Claude Van Damme
He began learning martial arts at the tender age of 10. His styles revolve around kickboxing and Shotokan Karate. At the age of 18, he earned a black belt in karate and he also went on to win the title of Mr. Belgium bodybuilder. He, later on, learned many martial arts forms and made his directorial debut in a martial art film: the quest.
- Johnny Tri Nguyen
When he was just 9 years old he competed in the US national team as a martial artist. He is known to be a good action choreographer, martial artist, film actor, and stuntman. He’s a very active choreographer in the film industry and has broken several records as well.
It is very overwhelming to see that an age-old tradition like martial arts is still alive in the present times. And it is these top martial artists who are helping the martial arts stay alive even in today’s times. For those who don’t know, martial arts is derived from the Latin language which translates to “Art of Mars” – this means the war of Roman Gods.
