Worldwide National Wu-Shu Championship Competition 2009

BY BUTH REAKSMEY KONGKEA

The Cambodia Wu-Shu Federation (CWSF), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education Youth and Sport (MoEYS) will organize a worldwide national Wu-Shu Championship Competition. The competition will take place over five days from 19th-23rd June, at the National Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh.

About 200 Wu-Shu contenders, both male and female from 11 Wu-Shu clubs and associations from cities and provinces across the nation will attend the competition, said Mao Chan Thavuth, Secretary General of the Cambodia Wu-Shu Federation.

Chan Thavuth said that this year’s competition marks the fourth time that CWSF and MoEYS have organized the national Wu-Shu championship competition in Phnom Penh.

“The main objective of the competition is to select the best Wu-Shu contenders for the year and prepare for future international competitions. It also seeks to raise the profile of “Wu Shu” which is an ancient and energetic Chinese sport. It was introduced to Cambodia in 2000,” he said during a telephone interview with The Cambodia Weekly on May 6.

The Secretary General pointed out that the competition is divided into two categories; the first category provides an opportunity for competitors to display technical and artistic merit across 18 martial disciplines. The second category is all about pure combat based on weight. There are eight categories ranging from 45 kilos up to the heavyweight 70-kilogram class; female competitors are limited to two classes - 52 kilograms and 60 kilograms.

Thavuth added that for the overall winner there will be a gold medal, along with other valuable prizes. Runners-up will receive silver and bronze medals along with additional prizes. The medals and prizes were provided by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport.

Thavuth said that Wu-Shu was introduced to Cambodian athletes and subsequently recognized by MoEYS and the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) in 2000. He said since then Wu-Shu in Cambodia has gone from strength to strength with a Wu-Shu team to represent the nation at the upcoming SEA Games.

Currently there are a total of 16 Wu-Shu clubs and associations with 636 trainees, including 397 female trainees in Cambodia, according to CWSF report.

The report said Wu-Shu, also known as Modern Wu-Shu or Contemporary Wu-Shu is both an exhibition and a full-contact sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts. Wu-Shu was created in the People's Republic of China after 1949, in an attempt to nationalize the practice of traditional Chinese martial arts. ///

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