For a city of its size, Macau has achieved exceptional results in the competitive sport of martial arts. Look no further than the 19th Asian Games held in Hangzhou last year. At the same competition, SAR won his six medals, four of which were from martial arts competitions. The city's first and only gold medal at that year's competition also went to martial arts athlete Li Yi, who won the women's event. The only two gold medals won by Macau in the last Asian Games were won by fellow martial artists Jia Rui and Huang Junhua in 2010 and 2018, respectively.
For the uninitiated, wushu (literally “wushu”) is a type of martial arts display (though it can also be a contact sport) based on several Chinese fighting techniques. With the establishment of the International Wushu Federation in 1990, wushu has become a modern codified sport, but its origins can be traced back thousands of years.
Compared to Macau, neighboring countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong have had less success at the Asian Games, with the former never winning a gold medal in Wushu and the latter still missing out on the top prize in the men's Wushu event. ing. . Macau has also shown remarkable success on the international stage, winning 11 medals at the 2023 World Wushu Championships held in Dallas, USA. That total was just four seconds behind champion mainland China, which has far more talent to draw from.
[See more: 10 questions for Macao’s wushu gold medallist Li Yi]
Locally, martial arts is in a league of its own. Leong Chong Leng is one of the vice presidents of the Wushu General Association of Macau (WGAM) and is a former martial arts champion who represented Macau in the 1980s and 1990s, and currently works as a coach. He said: “There are 57 sports associations in Macau, but when it comes to participating in Asian and world competitions, our sports association ranks first. [Wushu association’s] The results are great. This is something everyone recognizes. ”
Of course, Macau's success in martial arts did not happen overnight, but came gradually through a combination of factors, including the city's rich martial arts culture and the establishment of WGAM itself.
The history of Macau's martial arts in a nutshell
Martial arts began to take shape throughout the 20th century. The development of organizations such as the Shanghai Jingwu Sports Association and the First Chinese National Wushu Competition, held in Shanghai at the beginning of this century, helped prepare the way for the eventual codification and modernization of traditional Chinese martial arts. I did.
However, as a traditional practice, martial arts have been around for thousands of years, and the International Martial Arts Federation believes their origins can be traced back to the Bronze Age (3000-1200 BC).
Records show that martial arts took hold in Macau during the late Qing Dynasty (c. 1840 to ca. 1912) and the early Republican period (c. 1912 to 1928). However, it was not until his 1930s that the development of the martial arts began to take off, and the Japanese invasion of China led to an influx of mainland Chinese martial arts practitioners into the city as refugees. They immediately began establishing schools.
Among the many prominent instructors who have left their mark on Macau's martial arts is Chui Chuk Kai, a master of the “Praying Mantis” style of martial arts. Man Chong Kong, a practitioner of Choi Li Fut, one of Macau's most popular martial arts styles. and Mr. Lei Man Iam, a teacher of Chen style Tai Chi.
[See more: Wushu star Li Yi is being honoured with a Silver Lotus medal]
For years past, it has been customary for various practitioners and their institutions to gather annually for the National Day (October 1st) celebrations. They are Cinema Alegría, Campo dos Operarios (a former sports stadium where Grand Lisboa now stands), or the old Tap Secac football ground (replaced by Tap Secac Square in 2007). ) was held. However, for decades they lacked a formal organization to coordinate their martial arts and represent the entire martial arts community.
This all changed in 1982. This was when Ho Yin, a prominent local businessman and father of Macau's first chief executive Edmund Ho, decided to establish the General Martial Arts Association, which would serve as a unifying force for Macau's martial arts community.
“His motivation is that the martial arts world has always been a patriotic community,” Leon explains. By coming together, they “will be able to support our country in its time of need.”
As fate would have it, Mr. Ho did not live to see the establishment of the association as he fell seriously ill after just two preparatory committee meetings. Then he passed away in his 1983 year and the project was discontinued. Over the next few years, one of his father's secretaries, Choi Tong-hui, informed him of Ho's wishes, and his son was given the job. Young Ho's efforts culminated in his formation of WGAM on June 28, 1988.
Training Macau martial arts champions
With 118 affiliates and nearly 10,000 members, WGAM plays an integral role in developing the elite athletes who have made the city famous in martial arts competitions.
According to Leung, the association holds a number of regular competitions every year, including the Macau Wushu Championship and the Macau Junior Wushu Championship, the main competitions to recruit members for Macau's senior and junior wushu teams. It is said that there is.
[See more: ‘I’d like to show the world that there is a Macao athlete called Angela Wong’]
Winning gold medals at these championships will certainly get athletes considered by teams, but the WGAM vice-president said the organization also sees potential for growth in candidates, even if they don't perform at their best. It is pointed out that there is no guarantee that the applicant will be automatically entered. Results during the tournament.
The training was tough for those who passed, and Leon admitted that the time was “extremely long.” He said players are required to train for three hours from 6pm to 9pm every day of the year except Sunday. Despite the intensity of the program, the former martial artist says he has achieved good results in Macau's martial arts competitions.
Vacations are rarely given. “Our sport requires cumulative training, so taking time off immediately affects our progress,” Leon says. “If you don't train constantly, the physical benefits you gained from previous training will disappear. That's why our management style is very strict.”
[See more: Here’s where to learn Wushu in Macao]
Another important reason for the success of Macau's wushu athletes is the fact that WGAM frequently provides opportunities to train with the best wushu teams in mainland China. “Sometimes we train in Beijing, Fujian or other provinces,” Leung said. “I go to any place where the level of martial arts is high and do short-term training.” [mastery]Especially during the summer. ”
Leon admits that none of this would be possible without the support of the Special Administrative Region Government, which covers the costs necessary to send up to 30 athletes to such trainings. “If not, it would be very difficult.” [for us]” says Leong. “Because there is no way we can not cover the cost of food and lodging and have parents and students pay for it out of pocket.”
The government has given the association's junior and senior martial artists access to the Athlete Training Development Center where they can train using top-class facilities and equipment. The Sports Bureau also collaborated with WGAM to establish the Macau Wushu Youth Academy, which has supported the development of wushu in the city since 2007 by training the next generation of wushu talent in the special administrative region.
All of this is very different from the perception of martial arts when Leung first moved to Macau from Guangzhou in 1978. At the time, he points out, parents discouraged their children from taking up martial arts because of its association with fighting and turf. War and the Triad.
In the decades since then, WGAM has completely revamped the image of martial arts in the city, emphasizing the importance of: Ude (Wude) or martial arts code of conduct, as well as promoting the success of athletes and popularizing the sport to all ages. However, the group's work is still far from complete, and Leung said they are not only committed to the continued development of martial arts professionally in Macau, but also because training in martial arts such as Tai Chi is effective. He pointed out that he also aims to develop martial arts for the masses. Beneficial for health.
But Mr. Leung has far bigger ambitions. “I hope martial arts will be included in the Olympics.” [as an official sport]” he says, echoing the aspirations of many martial artists. His wish may come true, as the Olympic Committee will deliberate on the sport's viability at the Olympics after its debut at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games. If all goes well, Macau will gain further martial arts glory.
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