4th Tanma Wushu Culture Festival opens in Tancheng

The 2026 4th Tanma Wushu Culture Festival opened at the Tanma Wushu Culture Hall in Matou town, Tancheng county, Linyi in East China's Shandong province, on Oct 1, with martial arts masters, association representatives and audiences gathering to celebrate National Day through the martial arts.

Matou town has a long tradition of valuing scholarship and martial arts, with intangible cultural heritage such as the Heihu Zhaquan style passed down through generations. The festival has been held three times and has become an important platform for showcasing martial arts, promoting regional exchanges and advancing the integration of culture and tourism.

The performances opened with dragon and lion dances, followed by traditional boxing forms, weapons routines, group events and demonstrations by renowned masters. More than 20 programs were staged, including the vigorous and crisp Baji style, the smooth and rounded Tai Chi, the expansive Zhaquan style, and agile spear, imposing broadsword and whirling double-chain whip routines, along with paired combat demonstrations. Masters' performances brought the atmosphere to a peak.

The festival not only provided a platform for martial arts enthusiasts to exchange skills and display their talents, but also advanced the integration of national fitness and tourism in the ancient town, bringing new vitality to its centuries-old martial arts heritage during the National Day holiday.

The town is developing a layout featuring "one core, two axes, two water systems, four gates and five zones," integrating martial arts elements into the town's construction, tourism formats and street landscapes, and building a distinctive tourism brand centered on touring the ancient town, watching traditional martial arts and sampling local specialties.

Editor：韩蒙蒙