Iron Palm packs a punch in Shaolin Temple contest

The Iron Palm technique is in the spotlight again after a practitioner broke eight bricks with one hand to win a martial arts contest in the 1,500-year-old Shaolin Temple in Henan province.

Zhang Longxiang, 44, won the event by defeating more than 40 other contestants in the competition held from July 29 to Aug 4.

The Iron Palm technique is a traditional Chinese martial art and one of 72 originally created at the Shaolin Temple.