From 1949 the People's Republic of China created modern on the mainland. The Chinese Wushu Association was founded in 1958; standard forms, teaching and instructor grades were set; and traditional teaching was discouraged during the Cultural Revolution, from 1966 to 1976, before being promoted again. 1,3,14 In 1956 China's sports committee had masters create the 24 movement simplified tai chi form, from the Yang long form, for public health. 13
Two disciplines
Modern wushu has two halves. are routines judged out of 10: under the IWUF's 2024 rules, 5 points for quality of movement, 3 for overall performance and 2 for degree of difficulty. 41 , formerly sanshou, is full contact fighting with punches, kicks and throws on the , a platform 80 cm high and 8 m square, over three rounds of two minutes, in head guard, chest protector and gloves. 40,43
A world federation
The first international invitational tournament was held in Xi'an in 1985. The was founded on 3 October 1990, during the Asian Games in Beijing; the first World Wushu Championships followed in 1991; and the International Olympic Committee recognised the IWUF in 2002. 40 It now has 164 national members, and its member for Great Britain is the BCCMA. 40
Europe's continental body is new. The , the Wushu Kungfu Federation of Europe, was founded in Zurich on 26 June 2023 by 39 national federations and recognised by the IWUF on 21 September 2023. 14,50
Dakar 2026
Wushu is not on the Olympic programme: it was shortlisted for Tokyo 2020, in 2011 and again in 2015, but not chosen. 40 Its first Olympic series medals come at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games. The wushu events are set for 1 to 3 November 2026 at the Dakar Expo Center: 48 athletes in four events, men's and women's long fist combined with the staff, and men's and women's taijiquan combined with the tai chi fan, all using the IWUF's 3rd Set of and judged without degree of difficulty. Sanda is not included, and no British athlete is on the IWUF's list. 40,45
In Britain
The runs both sides at home, with national championships for modern taolu, traditional taolu, tai chi and push hands, sanda, light sanda and Chinese wrestling. 82 Its light contact version, , allows no strikes to the head or face for 5 to 14 year olds and disqualifies a knockout. 84 The 2026 National Juniors Qingda Championships are dated 7 November 2026. 81 The BCCMA sets no syllabus and awards no student grades; each style association decides those. 80,83
A class tonight
A first class in a UK club carries the whole story. Students greet the teacher with the , the right fist pressed into the open left palm at chest height. 41 The teacher is the , a title rather than a rank, and classmates may be older or younger brothers and sisters by when they joined. 15 Clubs describe much the same shape: a warm up, stances and basics, a form, partner work, and breathing or a cool down to finish. 102,112,119,121 Which form comes first depends on the style: Wing Chun beginners usually start with Siu Nim Tau, and Shaolin Temple UK starts everyone on five classic stances. 6,102,119
A monastery on Mount Song, a legend of a burning temple, a physician in Guangzhou, a gathering in Nanjing, a teacher in Hong Kong and a hall in Britain tonight are all one story.