Coach Ma is one of the characters i mention frequently.

Some interesting information about him:

• Master Li’s student from a very young age
• Was whisked away from Shuaijiao and into the Freestyle wrestling system as a kid
• Was on the Beijing Freestyle team at the same sport school as Jet Li…at the same time.
• Coach Ma’s wife was Jet Li’s team mate and is still a wushu coach

• Multiple Beijing Shuaijiao Champion
• Coach Ma is the national director of competitions for China governing body for Shuaijiao
• Coach Ma along with Master Li and Master Xu Gang will conduct a National Referee Certification Training Camp in Cangzhou THIS month

If you have a chance to meet and learn from Coach Ma count yourself very lucky. He is a lovely guy and has soooo much knowledge and experience that he shares openly. If you want to make it happen, you know who to call. If you can’t wait…well check my youtube videos out!

Keep Smilin’

Michael

Last year I filmed this documentary for Beijing TV.

I don’t think of myself as interesting. But the story i guess is. Kiwi in China in love with Shuaijiao - something that most Chinese don’t even know exists.

Its in Chinese, but i speak so slowly that you will have time to look up each word as I speak! It’s quite shocking to hear yourself speak…now i know the Chinese are being polite when they say “Oh your Chinese is so good”. Lol.

But if you don’t mind watching it  - its about 25 minutes long - you can see Master Li, Coach Ma, Xiao Li, Ma Ke, Lao Zhang and most of the guys. You can see us training at  Coach Li Deshun’s - of the “Huochetou” Team - Beijing Train Station venue. We trained there while our Xuanwu School was being rebuilt last winter.

You can also see some other parts of my life here in Beijing. It might be inspiring for you if you have a dream of coming to China and living and learning Shuaijiao.

Interestingly, after this was filmed I was selected as one of Beijing’s 100 most interesting international people. I was supposed to make an additonal documentary but i didnt have time so they edited this one down to 5 minutes and presented it along with 99 other stories to the world’s Olympic broadcasting teams as a gift that they can broadcast in their own country.

Well i hope it achieves a good plug for Shuaijiao. I need to find more opportunities to promote Shuaijiao both here in China and around the world… ANY IDEAS? All welcome.

 CLICK HERE TO SEE DOCUMENTARY

Hope you enjoy it

Keep Smilin’

Michael

After a year or so of writing about Shuaijiao…it is time you all got to know me a little better…the good the bad and the ugly.

One caveat: i want to know you a bit better too!

Add me on Facebook and we can stay in touch

Search for: Michael Ashley Wix

Keep Smilin’

Michael

ps. Im also on MSN: ashleywix@hotmail.com

The Olympics were sensational.

It was wonderful to be a part of them and to see China shine… I hope you all feel inspired to come over here and experience China first hand.

One thing that limits Shuaijiao’s development in China is the old Soviet-style of developing and training professional athletes. They choose them very young and put them in sports schools where they are trained rigorously with the ultimate goal being to win Olympic gold for the motherland.

Most of the Chinese athletes competing in the 2008 games have emerged from this system.

The impact on Shuaijiao is this: Kids start in Shuaijiao, show some talent and interest… then get whisked off to a sport school to study Freestyle, Grecco-roman, or Judo…and now even Taekwondo (can you believe that!). But those sports are “medal sports”… Shuaijiao is not.

Most of the kids come back to Shuaijiao after they have finished competing, or when they have reached the limits of their development for whatever reason (usually an injury) but by that stage it’s too late for Shuaijiao. So, interestingly… the Shuaijiao we see in China is largely populated by athletes who were not successful in other disciplines (i hope i don’t get in too much trouble for that comment). Imagine for a moment how awesome China’s Shuaijiao could be if it’s pool of talent wasn’t continually drained by other wrestling “medal” disciplines…

Well, The Wall Street Journal found out about this… and decided to do a story. CLICK HERE

It is a story that really needs to be told. But there is only one or two people i really want to see this story. I want President Hu Jintao to see it. I want him to see it and say: “We need to take massive action to protect and develop this aspect of our physical culture before it is lost”

Let me know what you think… and i’m in it so now you can put a face to the name

Keep Smilin’

Michael