Chinese martial arts and fitness practices have proved popular among foreign participants at the recently-concluded second Traditional Sports International Festival in southwest China's Yunnan Province, with the activities lauded for promoting physical well-being and fostering cultural exchanges among people worldwide.
The festival took place from Friday to Monday in Kunming, capital of Yunnan, and saw more than 700 participants from 27 countries and regions competing in four events: the martial art of Wushu, also known as Kung Fu, the elegant fitness ritual of Qigong, the Chinese chess game known as Go or Weiqi, as well as the colorful and energetic dragon and lion dances which are often associated with festive occasions. Qigong, characterized by its slow movements, and Wushu were the two events that particularly attracted overseas attendees, with many believing these sports could enhance health and promote friendly cultural exchanges for those who traveled to China for the sports festival.
"My father practiced Qigong (for) a very long time, and for our family, it's very important. Unfortunately, I practice not so long, but I'm happy because I have some problem with my health, and this practice helps me, and maybe for four years, my health very (much) changed after practicing Qigong," said Kristina Sterlikova, a member of the All-Russian Qigong Federation.
The sports festival, which saw its second edition taking place in Yunnan, provided participants and spectators with the opportunity to not only enjoy the events but also deepen their understanding of the rich and extensive traditional Chinese sports culture.
Mexican martial artist Daniel Benjamin Corona Aguilar hailed how the event brought people together from all across the globe.
"I think the most beautiful thing about Wushu is that it involves a lot of different things together in one. It is a sport, but it is also a culture, it is also friendship, it is also getting to know more people. You know in Mexico, we say Wushu is from China, but it also belongs to us. So, I think Wushu is a way to unite cultures, right, unite people from Mexico, from China and from many other places around the world," he said.
Chinese martial arts, fitness prove popular among foreigners at traditional sports festival in Yunnan
China's development has never been a "threat" to anyone but the source of growth advancing common development of all countries, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a regular press conference in Beijing on Friday.
Some Western media and think tanks are peddling so-called "China Shock 2.0," saying that "China is achieving fast development in high-tech sectors such as renewable energy and AI and relies on foreign markets to absorb its overcapacity, thus reducing the market share of developed countries and sending more serious shock waves to the global economy compared with the era of traditional manufacture industry," while there are foreign commentators saying that the "China Shock 2.0" argument ignores the genuine innovation occurring within the Chinese industrial ecosystem and that Chinese export is the exact booster of the global economy that is needed in the turbulent period and more indispensable than ever.
Commenting on that, Lin said: "From the world's factory to the world's market and innovation powerhouse, China's development is achieved through strong performance driven by innovation and brings tangible cooperation opportunities and space to the world. High-quality Chinese products represented by the 'old three' of textiles, furniture and home appliances have stabilized the global industrial and supply chain, lowered the living cost of global consumers and eased the inflationary pressure worldwide. China's green production capacity represented by the 'new three' of electric vehicles, batteries and solar panels has bridged the gap between supply and demand in global green development and bolstered the global energy transition and low-carbon development. Moreover, China's high-tech products represented by the 'new new three' of robots, AI and innovative drugs have broken high-tech barriers and monopoly and enabled people in more countries to access affordable new technologies," said the spokesman.
"Openness and cooperation bring about progress and win-win result. China's development has never been a 'threat' to anyone but the source of growth advancing common development of all countries. What really creates 'shocks' to the world has never been the innovation of Chinese companies and efficiency of Chinese industrial capacity, but protectionist moves of setting up barriers, decoupling and severing industrial and supply chains. China will stay committed to high-standard opening up, defend the multilateral trading system and provide more certainty and new impetus to the world economy with its own steady development," said Lin.
China's development never a threat: FM spokesman
