Shaolin Temple hosts martial arts competition

ZHENGZHOU, China, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Shaolin Temple, the cradle of the Chinese martial arts located in central China's Henan province, on Sunday hosted a martial arts competition attracting more than 100 enthusiasts.

The competition featured four traditional events of Iron Palm Kungfu, Stone Lock Kungfu, Two-Finger Zen and Flying Knife Kungfu.

Zhang Longxiang, 44, broke eight bricks in one stroke with his palm to win the Iron Palm title. He started learning martial arts at the age of 10, and has been training Iron Palm for over two decades.

"Shaolin Temple, the birthplace of Shaolin KungFu, has become a good platform for us to communicate among our martial arts lovers, and I like it very much," said Zhang.

Giuliano Zampese, a student of the Shaolin Culture Center in Venice, Italy, also stayed at the Shaolin Temple to receive traditional Kungfu training with two friends.

"It's nice to see the performance but so difficult for me to do like them, I have never watched such a stunning show like that although I have been practicing Shaolin Kungfu for 15 years," said Zampese.

The Martial Arts competition at the Shaolin Temple will continue through July 31.