11/07/2026
𝗔𝗕𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗞𝗨𝗡𝗚 𝗙𝗨 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗕𝗔𝗧
"𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘶 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘵. 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘵, 𝘪𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘶, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘴" – 𝘋𝘶 𝘡𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘰, 8𝘵𝘩 𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘶
Chinese martial arts, commonly known as wushu or kung fu, have a rich and profound history as a sophisticated part of China's cultural heritage. In particular, classical styles and choreographed forms have long been popular, but some disciplines have maintained combat as their highest priority and continued to evolve. Our community's interest is in these fighting practices, currently focusing on unarmed combat via the highly representative disciplines of sanda and qinna.
Sanda, meaning "free fighting", is a discipline of the modern sport of wushu. Its focus is summarised in the adage "kick from afar, punch when close, throw from the clinch". Sanda was formerly known as sanshou (literally "free hand") – a kung fu term meaning combat application practice – and is a continuation of historical lei tai (traditional raised fighting platform) contests. Originating from the combination of kung fu with boxing, sanda's main pioneers were esteemed wushu masters Zhang Wenguang, Jiang Haoquan, and Wen Jingming from the Central Guoshu Institute. Its key characteristics are dynamic long range striking and sudden takedowns that seamlessly enable and counter each other.
Qinna, literally meaning "seizing and holding", is a Chinese martial arts term referring to control-based grappling techniques. Historically part of all kung fu styles, it is a close range skillset focusing on hand-fighting and clinching. It particularly became a focus of Chinese military and police combatives, where its main systems were chiefly codified by decorated shuai jiao (Chinese wrestling) exponent Du Zhongxun and his son Du Zhengao, also an accomplished wrestler. Qinna specialises in using various grips and locks to cause a misalignment in the opponent's joints that breaks their balance and posture, thereby taking them down or leaving them vulnerable to close range strikes.
Kung fu's combat disciplines combine fighting efficiency with physical education and traditional culture, shaped by generations of Chinese martial artists. Whether it's through sanda or qinna, we look forward to sharing these arts with you to achieve the aims set out in our motto: fitness, self-defence, friendship, and culture.
Images:
1. Zhang Wenguang practising boxing
2. "Sanshou Quanfa" by Zhang Wenguang
3. Du Zhongxun demonstrating shuai jiao
4. "Qinna and Counter-qinna" by Du Zhongxun and Du Zhengao
𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝘀: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/192qkjodHD/
