On January 1, the opening ceremony of the Guangdong-Hong Kong- Macao Greater Bay Area Martial Arts Exchange Center was held in Wong Fei-hung Stadium, marking the Center’s official launch in Xiqiao Town, Nanhai District, Foshan. In the upcoming future, the Center will play its role in promoting the brand "Kung-Fu Nanhai" internationally, which will make Foshan the "City of Martial Arts" worldwide.

Guangdong-Hong Kong- Macao Greater Bay Area Martial Arts Exchange Center unveiled in Wong Fei-hung Stadium (Photo by Zhong Zihong, Pearl River Times)

The location of the Center is highly related to the profound history of martial arts in Nanhai.

Foshan, the place giving birth and cultivating the South-style Martial Arts of China, won "The City of Martial Arts" in China. To people in Nanhai, martial arts has been an exercise for hundred years long, and the performance shows the inclusive, pioneering, united and diligent spirit.

With this immersive environment, Nanhai has achieved great success in martial arts. Over the past few years, martial arts teams of Nanhai won 37 gold medals from provincial, national, and international competitions, and 119 gold medals at lion and dragon dancing competitions. Xiqiao Town in Nanhai District, the birthplace of lion dance and hometown of Wong Fei-hung, highlights the culture with almost 33 martial clubs and lion-dancing teams.

To build Foshan "the City of Martial Arts", Nanhai has listed martial arts as the core content into the Lingnan cultural city plan and cultural heritages project and uses innovation as the new engine driving its development. Foshan now is planning to use martial arts competitions as media for connections, and more martial arts games or performances will be held next.

Xiqiao now is building activities and tourism routes with its rapid growth of the film industry in Nanhai. Recently, more films themed on martial arts were shot in Nanhai, which has promoted the culture development. More than 100 films or TV shows production teams have chosen CCTV Nanhai Movie and TV Town as one of their shooting locations.

Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macau are developed from the same roots and grow closer generally. Nanhai, the birthplace of Lingnan culture, seizes the opportunities in the development of the Greater Bay Area construction, urban-rural development strategies of Guangdong, and the Martial Arts Exchange Center launching to incorporate the development of martial arts into the Greater Bay Area Plans. It helps accelerate innovation growth of Nanhai martial arts heading towards a higher-quality direction, which will inject new energy into Nanhais development of "the City of Martial Arts".

Author | Wency

Revisor | Jessica

Source | 西樵镇宣传文体旅游办, Pearl River Times