Dr Tan KeeLee was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1966. It was the year of the Horse. At the age of thirteen, Dr Tan began his martial arts training in the art of Judo and won a silver medal in the Selangor Judo Open Championship at the age of fourteen. By seventeen, he was the vice president of the Victoria Institution Judo Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Dr Tan came to Western Australia in 1984 to pursue his university education in medicine at the University of Western Australia. During that time, there was no Chin Woo in Western Australia. From 1984 until 1986, he trained Buck Sing Choy Lay Fut under Grandmaster David Lacey. In 1987, Dr Tan co-founded Western Australia Chin Woo.
In 1989, he trained under Grandmaster Chia ShueFoy of Singapore Chin Woo Athletic Association in Singapore. A year later, Dr Tan trained under Grandmaster Teng WieYoo of Selangor & Kuala Lumpur Chin Woo Athletic Association, Malaysia. Dr Tan continued to visit Selangor & Kuala Lumpur Chin Woo for several years to consult with school officials and to extend his expertise in martial arts. There he met up with Grandmaster Yap HonFai, Grandmaster Ng KwaiYing, Grandmaster Chan ChoyYoke and Grandmaster Wong KokFai, who took him under their tutelage.
Over the years, the Chin Woo authorities were very impressed with Dr Tan’s dedication, hard work, and provided enthusiastic support and encouragement to Dr Tan’s efforts to spread Chin Woo in Western Australia. These efforts led to Western Australia Chin Woo being formally and officially established on June 25, 1996.
Dr Tan enjoys cultivating new blood, especially hardworking students who are eager to learn. He enlightens everyone to the traditional spirit of Chin Woo and enjoys promoting Wushu and Chinese culture. He keeps an open mind and shares his experiences and knowledge with his students and thus is greatly admired and respected by his students.
Currently, Dr Tan practises as a Cosmetic Surgeon and is the chief instructor of Western Australia Chin Woo Athletic Association, emphasising on Shaolin Kungfu, Modern Wushu, Tai Chi and Dragon & Lion Dancing. He runs a very busy medical practice and yet he is still dedicated to the Western Australia Chin Woo Athletic Association. Dr Tan is also an International Wushu Federation (IWuF) medical official and is heavily involved with the Australian National Wushu Team (Junior & Adult) in various roles. He feels it is his duty to pass on the Chinese culture and martial arts to the next generation. He still practices martial arts daily and has been teaching for over 20 years. He hopes that one day the Chin Woo spirit will be spread to every state in Australia.