Bruce Lee's Personal Jump Rope

Personal jump rope.

The exhibit comes from the collection of his student and close friend Taki Kimura. Bruce Lee is a famous martial artist, Hong Kong and American film actor, film director, producer and screenwriter.

Taki Kimura and 18-year-old Bruce Lee met in 1960, at a time when Kimura came from Hong Kong to study in the States. Kimura was an exemplary teacher and an unsurpassed martial arts ambassador. He was Bruce Lee's first senior student and co-founder at the legendary Jun Fan Kung Fu Institute, located in Seattle's Chinatown. Kimura and Lee were extremely close -Kimura was the best man at Lee's wedding, as well as one of the six pallbearers during his funeral.

Throughout the friendship, the teacher gave his student not only personal belongings, but also drawings, letters, photographs, as well as sports equipment. So, in 1969, a skipping rope that once belonged to Bruce Lee turned out to be in Kimura's collection. It was made by George Lee, who made almost all the sports equipment for a martial artist.

Interestingly, Bruce Lee, known for his incredible level of cardiovascular development, endurance and strength, talked about the jump rope as one of his main cardio simulators. "Skipping rope is extremely beneficial for anyone who is engaged in martial arts," Bruce Lee said, noting that exercises with a skipping rope not only improve athletic fitness and strengthen leg muscles, but also contribute to the development of a feeling of "light legs".