NW China holds martial arts festival

Contestants show their moves at the Kongdong International Martial Arts Festival.[Photo/xinhuanet.com]

When the city of Pingliang, Gansu province held the opening ceremony for its Kongdong International Martial Arts Festival, Aug 2, it got more than 200 people taking part with different styles of martial arts.

On and for the opening ceremony of the event, which includes routines, positioning, swordsmanship and qigong, was the vice-mayor of Pingliang, Li Shengfa, who explained to the gathering that the Kongdong district has a long history of martial arts and one of the five Chinese martial arts sects so it was honored as the "hometown of martial arts" by China's General Administration of Sports in 2014.

Other activities at the 5-day event included a forum on good health, a painting and calligraphy seminar, and of course martial arts competitions, with at least 21 delegations from across the country taking part and the youngest contestant being no more than 5-years-old.

In commenting on the festival, Li noted, "Pingliang expects to use this opportunity to publicize its martial arts and build a health-maintenance base," then added, "The forerunners of Kongdong used to repel invasions and protect the homeland with martial arts but now the local people continue the tradition as culture to help social development."