The International Invitational Wushu Championships, also known as the International Wushu Festivals, were a series of international wushu competitions held from 1985 until the formation of the International Wushu Federation (IWUF) in 1990. These competitions were the first ever international wushu competitions, and preceded the World Wushu Championships which started in 1991.
| International Invitational Wushu Championships | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Global sports event |
| Inaugurated | (1982) 1985 |
| Most recent | 1990 |
| Organised by | Chinese Wushu Association |
Championships
editTaolu
edit| Year | Edition | Location | Notes |
| 1982 | (0) |  China
|
Also known at the International Wushu Festival |
| 1984 | (0) | Wuhan, China
|
Taijiquan only |
| 1985 | 1 | Xi'an, China
|
|
| 1986 | 2 | Tianjin, China
|
Also known as the Tianjin Daily Cup |
| 1988 | 3 | Hangzhou, China
|
|
| 1989 | (0) | Beijing, China
|
Also known at the International Wushu and Taijiquan Festival |
| 1990 | 4 |  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
|
Sanda
edit| Year | Edition | Location |
| 1988 | 1 | Shenzhen, China
|
| 1991 | 2 | Beijing, China
|
History
editBackground
editIn January 1982, the movie Shaolin Temple (1982) was released as the first film to feature modern wushu.[1] Later that year, the General Administration of Sport of China officially proclaimed that wushu practitioners had a duty 'to promote wushu to the world'[2][3] with the ultimate goal of wushu becoming an official event at the Olympic Games. In June, the Chinese Wushu Association (CWA) hosted a small-scale international wushu tournament.[4] A year later in 1983, Beijing won the bid to host the 1990 Asian Games, the first international multi-sport event to occur in China, and wushu was added as a new sport.
1985, Xi'an
editThe CWA officially hosted the 1st International Invitational Wushu Championships in Xi'an from August 22-25, 1985.[4][5] 91 athletes from 14 nations competed. China finished in first place with a clean sweep of 14 gold medals, Japan finished in second with five silver and three bronze medals, Canada and Hong Kong finished in third with two silver medals, the United States was fourth with six bronze medals, and Singapore earned a silver medal.[6] Zhao Changjun and Zhang Hongmei from China captured the male and female all-around titles respectively.[6] At this competition, a preparatory committee was formed for the foundation of the International Wushu Federation (then abbreviated to the IWF) which was led by the CWA and joined by various individuals and organizations throughout the world.[7]
All-around results
edit| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Zhao Changjun China
|
Hideo Ninomiya Japan
|
Richard Vecchiolla United States
|
| Women | Zhang Hongmei China
|
Atsuko Noguchi Japan
|
Hisako Morita Japan
|
1986, Tianjin
editThe CWA hosted the second competition in Tianjin from November 2-4, 1986.[4][8] More than 200 athletes from 24 countries participated. China won 16 out of 17 gold medals, while Great Britain's Nigel Sutton won the last gold medal in baguazhang.[9] Zhao Changjun and Zhang Yuping from China captured the male and female all-around titles respectively. At this event, the preparatory committee for the Wushu Federation of Asia (WFA) was formed to host the first Asian Wushu Championships in 1987.[10]
All-around results
edit| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Zhao Changjun China
|
Philip Wong United States
|
Nick Gracenin United States
|
| Women | Zhang Yuping China
|
Alice Chang Canada
|
Gillian Barber Great Britain
|
1988, Hangzhou
editThe third championships were held in Hangzhou in 1988.[11][12] 486 athletes from 32 countries participated.[13] Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United Kingdom grabbed a gold medal each while China won the rest.[14] After the taolu competition, the festival transitioned into the first International Invitational Sanshou Championships which relocated to Shenzhen. China won four out of the seven contested weight categories, while Mexico, Belgium, and the Philippines won a gold medal each.[7][15]
All-around results
edit| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Yuan Wenqing China
|
Hai Choi Lam Hong Kong
|
unknown |
| Women | unknown | unknown | unknown |
Other competitions
editChina hosted the International Wushu and Taijiquan Festival in Beijing from August 12-15, 1989. 200 athletes from 16 nations participated.[16]
The second Asian Wushu Championships was hosted by Hong Kong in 1989. At this competition, the IWUF was expected to be established with the first world championships in 1990.[17] Due to delays, this was unable to be completed, and thus the CWA thus gave the Wushu Federation of Malaysia on short notice the authority to host an international competition in the middle of 1990. Later in 1990, the wushu competition at the 1990 Asian Games took place.[5] On October 3, the last day of competition, the IWUF was officially formed. In November of the same year, the CWA hosted a second international sanshou competition.[18]
In March 1991, the CWA hosted the second international sanshou tournament in Beijing. China won six golds, and Romania and Gabon earned a gold each.[19] In October, the IWUF hosted the 1st World Wushu Championships.
References
edit- ^ "Martial Arts Fever Sweeps China off its Feet". New York Times. 1982-09-12. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ^ Brownell, S (2012). Lo, Vivienne (ed.). "Wushu and the Olympic games: 'Combination of east and west' or clash of body cultures?". The International Journal of the History of Sport. 188. London: British Museum Research Publications: 59–69 – via SAGE Publishing.
- ^ ""北京2008武术比赛"-武术何时走进奥运会国际在线奥运频道8月22日封面故事". China Radio International (in Chinese). 2008-08-21. Retrieved 2021-03-12.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c "Chinese wushu steps up to internationalization". Xinhua General News Service. Jinan. Xinhua News Agency. 1986-06-26. 0623039. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ a b "Wushu, a new sports in asiad". Xinhua General News Service. Beijing. Xinhua News Agency. 1990-09-29. 0929230. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ a b "first international wushu contest concludes". Xinhua General News Service. Xi'an. Xinhua News Agency. 1985-08-25. 082550. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ a b Kokubu, Masaya (1988-12-22). "ASIAN NEWS-CHINA; CHINA WANTS WUSHU FREE COMBAT IN FUTURE OLYMPICS". Kyodo News. Tokyo. Japan Economic Newswire. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "2nd international martial arts tourney to be held in china". Xinhua General Overseas News Service. Beijing. Xinhua News Agency. 1986-10-24. 1024140. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "international martial arts tournament ends in tianjin". Xinhua General Overseas News Service. Tianjin. Xinhua News Agency. 1986-11-04. 1104165. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "preparatory committee for asian wushu (martial arts) federation established". Xinhua General News Service. Tianjin. Xinhua News Agency. 1986-11-03. 1103118. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "China to try to get wushu into olympics, state councillor li tieying says". Xinhua General News Service. Hangzhou. Xinhua News Agency. 1988-10-15. 1015214. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "Philippine wushu delegation leaves for China to attend international wushu festival". Xinhua General News Service. Manila. Xinhua News Agency. 1988-10-08. 1008097. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "浙江武术的溯源与发展" [The origin and development of Zhejiang martial arts]. Zhejiang Wushu Association (in Chinese). 2003-10-18. Retrieved 2024-02-04.
- ^ "foreigners share spotlight at international wushu tournament". Xinhua General News Service. Hangzhou. Xinhua News Agency. 1988-10-14. 1014230. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "international free sparring invitational tourney ends in china". Xinhua General Overseas News Service. Shenzhen. Xinhua News Agency. 1988-10-20. 1020221. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "international wushu (martial arts) festival held in beijing". Xinhua General Overseas News Service. Beijing. Xinhua News Agency. 1989-08-12. 0812161. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "china to host international wushu championships in 1990". Xinhua General Overseas News Service. Hangzhou. Xinhua News Agency. 1988-10-12. 1012215. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "china to hold international wushu free sparring invitational". Xinhua General News Service. Beijing. Xinhua News Agency. 1990-07-01. 0701063. Retrieved 2021-08-15.
- ^ "wushu sanshou tourney concludes". Xinhua News Agency. 1991-03-02. 0302186. Retrieved 2024-01-31.