SEA Games: The beauty of Vietnamese wushu

Duong Thuy Vi performs in the jianshu event of SEA Games 31 in Hanoi on Friday. She is considered the golden girl of Vietnamese wushu, who often claims gold for Vietnam in SEA Games and Asian Games.

Vi solidified herself as one of the most successful Vietnamese wushu athletes with two world titles, one Asian Games gold and six SEA Games gold, including two at the ongoing Games.

Tran Thi Kieu Trang competes in the jianshu event. The girl from Quang Ninh Province said that she developed a passion for wushu after watching other athletes perform on TV.

Wushu is a soft, hard and mixed martial art originated from China. Its events are performed using compulsory or individual routines.

Before the performance, the athletes must first register for difficulty level A, B or C.

In the freestyle event, the referee will give the score based on difficulty and the skill of the athletes.

The Taolu event mainly focused on movements like kicking, balancing, pushing, sweeping and acrobatics.

The flexibility of athletes combined with a combo of movements is soft but also powerful.

Wushu is not an Olympic sport, but Vietnamese wushu team have solidified their place in the region and also the world with many outstanding athletes for the last 30 years.

On Sunday, Vietnam dominated the wushu events of SEA Games 31 with seven gold medals won.