A Brief History of Kuoshu

The Origin of Kuoshu

The first Chinese Kuoshu (Guoshu in Pinyin) tournament was held in the city of Nanjing, China in October of 1928. Many regard this event as the birth of the modern Chinese martial arts tournament.

The Republican government of China in their effort of modernizing their country began the "Tiyu" (phisycal education) movement in order to strenghthen the general population. They also wanted to unite the Chinese people and decided to use the Chinese martial arts as not just a matter of phisycal education but also a point of national pride. With this began the use of the term Kuoshu in China. The term Kuoshu is an abbreviation of the term "Chung Kuo Wu Shu" (Zhongguo Wushu in Pinyin) which means "Chinese Martial Arts" and was used to identify the martial arts as a symbol of national pride.

Growth of the Kuoshu Movement 

The goal of the Kuoshu Center (located in Nanjing) was to promote the exchange of knowledge, tear down the curtain of prejudice between styles and encourage the slogan "A strong mind and a strong body builds a strong nation". This Kuoshu movement grew rapidly and China even sent a delegation of Kuoshu representatives to the Olympic Games held in Berlin, 1936 to demonstrate Kuoshu to the world.

Kuoshu continued to develop across countries after the retreat of the Republican government to the island of Taiwan (establishing the Republic of China - Taiwan) in 1948-49. Kuoshu tournaments continued growing with the Taiganau (Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau) tournaments and eventual participation in the Asian Games.

World Tournament 

In October of 1975, exactly 47 years after the original Kuoshu tournament took place, Kuoshu went international with the First World Kuoshu Tournament. This event was organized in Tainan City, Taiwan R.O.C. (Grandmaster Huang Chien-liang ,President of the USKSF, attended this very tournament)

United States Kuoshu Federation 

Kuoshu tournaments came to the U.S. in 1988 with the President of the, then, United States Kuoshu Federation - USKSF (previously United States Chinese Kuoshu Federation - USCKF) Huang Chien-liang sponsoring the first of this now yearly event. The USKSF has been sponsoring National and International world-class events in Hunt Valley, MD for over 15 years. Many Chinese martial arts practitioners compete in these prestigious tournaments yearly and every three years they compete for a chance to represent the U.S. Chinese Kuoshu Team in the World Championship Tournament, last year (2006) the tournament was held in Singapore and organized by The World Kuoshu Federation (TWKSF).

USKSF North Regional Tournament

Kuoshu continues to expand regionally within the U.S. With the addition, last year, of the UMAI Kung Fu Championships (Illinois) to the roster of Kuoshu tournaments in the region, we have increased and expanded the tournament quality and proportions. With the 5th USKSF North Regional Tournament the tradition continues - this is the result of local and national efforts to help promote and develop Kuoshu in this area.