New | China’s Shaolin Temple plans to host its first kung fu fighting event
Secret techniques expected to be shown during planned combat 'convention' for seasoned martial artists
The fabled Shaolin Temple, said to be the birthplace of kung fu, is planning to hold a competition for martial artists from around the world – what could be the first of its kind, mainland media reported.
”In an appropriate time in the future, we … are going to hold a world martial arts competition in the Shaolin Temple,” Shi Yongxin, abbot of the 1,500-year-old temple in Henan province, proposed during a closing ceremony of a Zen forum on Monday, news portal chinanews.com reported.
If the proposal moves forward, it would be the first time that the Shaolin Temple, the home of legendary warrior monks and thousands of kung fu martial arts enthusiasts from China and around the world, to hold such a martial arts combating convention.
Shi didn’t reveal when and how the convention would be arranged, but said that Shaolin martial arts students from all over the world would be invited to the convention, and some mysterious martial arts performances such as “iron shielding body” would be seen in action, the Henan-based Dahe Daily reported.
Top practitioners with other martial arts skills, such as taekwondo, karate and kick-boxing will be also invited, the report said.
News of martial arts convention soon raised heated discussion on mainland social media, where many people are particularly fascinated by culture, films and stories of Chinese martial arts.