HK gets a kick out of martial arts

There's no better place to get to grips with Chinese martial arts than right here. Hong Kong has been, and still is, home to the world's greatest martial arts experts. One of the greatest, Bruce Lee, was raised here, and Hollywood superstar Jackie Chan still calls Hong Kong his home. Many people in the city practise various forms of kung fu, tai chi and other martial arts as part of their daily fitness programmes.

One of the most popular martial arts is kung fu, with children and adults of all ages enjoying it not just for the sport, but also for the mental and physical health benefits practising it can bring.

'Kung fu helps build up the body,' says Connie Tse, a black belt, eighth dan, kung fu instructor. 'It also helps people prepare mentally, and have a positive view of life so that they are able to take up challenges in a confident, proactive and disciplined manner.'

'Children can start learning kung fu from the age of three,' she explains. 'We also offer tai chi to elderly students, so basically there is no upper age limit for practising kung fu.'

Classes are taught in English, but instructors at the association are fluent in both English and Cantonese.