Drunken boxing: Ancient Chinese martial art still alive in China

'Drunken Master' Jackie Chan films from screened from 1978 and 1994

Last updated: August 28, 2020 | 12:41

AFP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor

2 MIN READ

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Liu Xuliang lunges menacingly as if spoiling for a fight after too many drinks. But he is in fact stone-cold sober and an expert in an ancient Chinese martial art known as drunken boxing.

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There are no precise figures but Liu estimates that excluding those in martial-arts schools, about 1,000 people in China practise "zui quan", better known as drunken or drunkard's boxing.

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The 24-year-old, a full-time martial artist, crouches down, pauses, then springs up, twisting and twirling in the air.

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In motions which appear haphazard but are actually perfectly controlled, Liu then staggers backwards and leans all the way back before collapsing, motionless and with his arms splayed.

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"A drunken boxing practitioner is like a drunkard but actually he's very sober," said Liu.

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"The drunken boxing practitioner seems to be drunk, very funny, stumbling and swaying, and even barely standing still.

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"But actually he still has a strong sense of attacking and his boxing movements are very clear."

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The martial art's origins are unclear, but it is often thought to have sprung up as result of the tale of the drunken Eight Immortals in Chinese mythology.

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Liu, an expert in several different martial arts, became interested when he watched the "Drunken Master" Jackie Chan films from 1978 and 1994.

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Liu said there has been a fall in the number of people doing drunken boxing from the 1980s. But he has seen a recent uptick and the Chinese government appears determined to keep it alive.

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These days there is no fighting involved. Rather, Liu and other members of China's national martial arts team stage performances to raise interest.

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