a report by Sacha

I went to watch the Paris Shuaijiao cup again today.

To be honest, it seemed although some competitors had good skills, they were hesitant to take risks and this led to boring matches. This may be because of the “ippon” rules which gives the round to any competitor who scores a throw while keeping standing (the match being given to whoever wins the best two out of three 2 minutes rounds). This rule was strictly enforced, which meant that you could win a round simply by countering a throw and pushing your opponent on his back, as long as you didn’t touch the ground with your hands or knees yourself. This happened quite a few times, which might be why most fighters used a very defensive style with lots of trip attempts and leg grabs but not that many high amplitude throws.

I thought the Chinese team would dominate the competition, but to my surprise they only placed athletes in three out of six podiums. At least both Xiao Ma and Shang Hai won their category, while Zhang Jiang came in second or third, not sure.

Our friend Christian won second place in the Shou Bo competition. With his Sanda background, he was clearly bothered by the Dalian (Shuaijiao Jacket), and lost the final to a good French Shuaijiao fighter.

I can send you some videos, but I noticed the Chinese team taped everything with a real video camera, so their stuff will probably be better quality than mine.

Sacha

by France’s very own Shuaijiao Sacha

Back from the competition. The Chinese fighters didn’t do too well.
Their opponents were strong although not very technical, and their fighting style was probably different from what they were used to. The special rules might have also made it difficult to adapt for the Chinese team.

Each fight had three 2 minutes round, with the person winning 2 rounds winning the fight. But you could win a round by “ippon”, instead of only by accumulating points.

If I’m not mistaken two Chinese fighters lost their fights, although their fights were close, and the heavier one (90 or 100 kg +) won.

Of course my friend Xiao Ma (Ma Yubing) dominated both of his opponents and won his category ! He also displayed very good aggression and was always on the attack, qualities that most other competitors lacked.

A more completed report, along with very bad photos and blurry video, will come tomorrow after the second day.

Sacha

p.s. Sacha is a dude.

This is video i stumbled across of the Wuhan Institute of Sport Shuaijiao Team putting on a demonstration in Hong Kong. I don’t know exactly when it was but it was posted mid January this year on a Chinese Youtube-like site.

This video is a demonstration. It is not combat and to most people it is obvious that they aren’t trying to hurt one another. There are some interesting flips and counters which seem sensational. If you have had the pleasure of meeting any of these people- as you do living here - you would realize that these guys are sensational athletes capable of flipping out of any of my throws if i’m lucky enough to catch them with one at all.

For those of you interested in Shuaijiao education in China, Wuhan could be the second best place to go after Master Li’s place in Beijing. In fact, it is better because it is full-time training. The place to go is the Wuhan Institute of Sport, an increasingly famous sporting institution in China.

They have an excellent Shuaijiao program there as well as other progressive programs (The Chinese National Muay Thai Team is there too). 2 of our Beijing fighters live, train, and study there including Zhang Jiang (currently in France competing in the Paris Cup). The other tertiary institution offering Shuaijiao is the Tianjin Institute of Sport, where Gaoyu (see previous post) graduated from recently

Interestingly, my old school, the Beijing University of Physical Education - supposedly the leading sporting school in China - does not offer Shuaijiao. But given that the people who have destroyed Wushu are mostly in BUPE, perhaps it is best that Shuaijiao keeps it’s distance.

Having said that, I do believe that Shuaijao needs to be taught in schools in China. While is is not as interesting perhaps as Taekwondo, it is distinctly Chinese and contains many good lessons for people both young and old.

Enjoy

Michael

Well, the guys are competing in Paris right now… and I feel guilty because i skipped training this morning. I’m supposed to have the stitches removed from my face today… which means that i can sweat again… which means i can start working out again. So tomorrow!

One person who I would love to work out with at some stage is Gao Yu. Gaoyu － now retired from competing - is a multiple National Champ and one of the best wrestlers in China in ANY weight class. I have some footage, but can’t get it online right now… later i promise.

Anyway, I bump into him from time to time, and he comes to our club on occasion to see Master Li. But what’s good is that now it seems he has a regular place to train Shuaijiao fighters.

His club is called Gaoyu Chinese Fashion Wrestling Club. I’m not sure what’s with the name, but he seems organized and his site is in Chinese but well worth exploring.

There are some cool photos of Shuaijiao training equipment here. And some other cool photos of Gaoyu demonstrating techniques here.

Take a look

Keep Smilin’

Michael

This Saturday Paris will host one of the coolest Shuaijiao events of 2008. One that I really wish i could attend: The 2008 Paris Cup. (My previous post on this event is here)

Organized by Yuan Zumou, this event should be on all European Shuaijiao athletes calendar as there are some top competitors turning out, including a the China Team.

There are 4 fighters from our Beijing Club on the China Team: Zhang Jiang, Yao Dongdong, Wang Yanlong & Ma Yubing.

Zhang Jiang (above) is Ma Jianguo’s student and Li Baoru’s grand-student. He has practiced Shuaijiao for his whole life and is in the final stages of a university degree in Physical Education majoring in Shuaijiao at Wushu Sports Institute. Zhang Jiang is the current China national 90kg champion as well as the Taizhou International Champion.

Yao Dongdong is the son of Yao Dongjun the director of Beijing’s Tianchi International Shuaijiao Training Center. Dongdong is also a grand-student of Li Baoru and has a strong Shuaijiao and Judo background.

Wang Yanlong (above) is one of my favorite Shuaijiao fighters and is also from Tianchi. A national champ at 80kgs, and like Zhang Jiang, he wins most of his fights by 9 point advantage. The equivalent of a KO in Shuaijiao.

Ma Yubing is relatively new to Shuaijiao. He has been training for the past 2 years under Ma Jianguo and Li Baoru. His very strong Wushu background allowed him to pick up Shuaijiao movements easily. His incredible balance and fitness makes him very difficult to throw…even for me when i outweigh him by 40kgs!

The Chinese Team is being lead by Coach Ma Jianguo. One of China’s leading Shuaijiao coaches and the Chinese Shuaijiao Development Council’s Director of Competition. (Coach Ma is one of the coaches in my Technique of the Week videos)

Best of luck to all!

& if you see one of our guys, go and say “ni hao”. They are all super nice and probably won’t throw you on your head

Michael

ps. I’d love to post a report or photos or video of the competition if anyone plans to go. If you can help mail me at michael@shuaijiao.tv

Christian trains in Beijing with Ma Jianguo and Li Baoru on a yearly basis.

Christian’s main interest is in Sanshou but his fighting style includes some very strong Shuaijiao skills, as you will see in the vid.

In fact, this video of non-Chinese Sanda fights includes some of the best footage I have seen from outside of China. All the winning athletes train with the Sanda Team from a club in France called Association Dragon Bretigny.

Christian’s fights are at 1:13 & 3:23

Awesome work Christian!

Enjoy!

Michael

P.S. Watch out for Christian at Yuan Zumou’s Shoubo & Shuaijiao Event 29-30th of March!

posted on behalf of Antonio Langiano

EUROPEAN SHUAIJIAO SEMINAR 2008

The second in the successful series of European Shuaijiao seminars is
to be held in Valencia, Spain, from Friday 30 May to Saturday 1 June,
2008.

This seminar is being organized by the internationally recognized
official federation for Shuaijiao in Europe: European Shuaijiao Union
(ESJU). The event is sanctioned by Antonio Langiano, President of the
ESJU; and organized by Roberto Sejio Lombao, President of the Spanish
Shuaijiao Union.

Over 100 athletes are expected to participate in the seminar, from the
following countries and regions: France; Germany; Great Britain;
Ireland; Italy; Poland; Portugal; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; and the
Basque Country.

The seminar will be delivered in accordance with ESJU training standards
and include:

Shuaijiao Techniques
Instructor Examination and Certification (Approved by the ESJU)
Public Demonstration

Following the seminar the Executive Board of the ESJU will meet to
discuss the organization of the next European Shuaijiao Championships,
to be held later this year.

For information contact Antonio Langiano at: italy@esju.org or visit the
ESJU website www.esju.org