that these were only men’s skills, however, is somewhat misleading, for
women also practiced them. The Travels of Marco Polodescribes one in-
stance where the daughter of King Kaidu (grandson of Ogodai) agreed to
marry any man who could best her in wrestling. But, much to the dismay
of her family and other well-wishers, she took her skill seriously, defeated
all hopefuls, and remained single. The Mongols prohibited Han Chinese
martial arts practices, which by this time consisted mainly of boxing and
weapons routines.
Like the Mongols, the Manchus, who ruled China between 1644 and
1911, stressed riding, archery, and wrestling. They too attempted to place
restrictions on Han Chinese martial arts practices, which they associated
with subversive activities. Emperor Kangxi (1662–1722) is said to have es-
tablished an elite Expert Wrestlers Banner (Shanpu Ying) to reward the
strongmen/bodyguards he used to keep palace intrigues in check. Manchu
emperors actively encouraged wrestling, called buku,among their own
people and used it as a political and diplomatic tool in their relations with
the Mongols. The Tibetans were also fond of wrestling, and this activity is
depicted in a wall mural in the Potala Palace.
The main objective of Chinese wrestling, regardless of local variations
of style (such as Beijing, Baoding, Tianjin, or Mongolian), is to throw the
opponent to the ground by a combination of seizing, and arm maneuvers
(twists and turns) and leg maneuvers (sweeps and hooks). A rough-and-
tumble folk sport, it was practiced under Spartan conditions, without mats,
and wrestlers practiced rolling in a fetal position to lessen the impact from
hitting the ground.
In the turmoil following in the wake of the Communist rise to power
in China and finally the split between the People’s Republic of China and
Taiwan in 1949, a number of Chinese wrestling masters immigrated to Tai-
wan. Among them was shuaijiao (or, as it is more commonly spelled in the
West, shuai-chiao) champion Chang Tung-sheng. Chang and his students
were instrumental in popularizing the system outside of Asia.
Chinese wrestling was popularized in the twentieth century as sport
shuaijiao. The modern form is a type of jacketed wrestling, although prac-
titioners assert that throwing in shuaijiao does not depend on grabbing the
opponent’s jacket or clothing. The priority is to grab the muscle and bone
through the clothing in order to control and throw down the opponent.
However, the use of the competitor’s heavy quilted, short-sleeved jacket,
which wraps tightly around the torso and is tied with a canvas belt, adds
variety to the techniques used in controlling and throwing the opponent.
Fast footwork using sweeps, inner hooks, and kicks to the opponent’s legs
are combined with the use of the arms to control and strike in order to cre-
ate a two-directional action, making a powerful throw.708 Wrestling and Grappling: China