Tai Chi culture vigorously promoted in county in C China's Henan

1. Photo shows the place where the Yellow River and the Yiluo River meet in Wenxian county, Jiaozuo city, central China's Henan Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Wenxian County Committee)

2. Photo shows a large-scale Tai Chi performance in Wenxian county, Jiaozuo city, central China's Henan Province. (Photo/Xu Hongxing)

3. A vlogger practices Tai Chi in Wenxian county, Jiaozuo city, central China's Henan Province. (Photo/Wu Wei)

Chenjiagou village, located in Wenxian county, Jiaozuo city, central China's Henan Province, is known for Tai Chi, or Taijiquan, a centuries-old Chinese martial art. Tai Chi was developed by the skilled martial artist Chen Wangting in the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Today, Tai Chi has become a bright calling card for Wenxian county.

"Everyone in Wenxian county knows about Chenjiagou village. Even as a child, I was aware that Tai Chi masters lived here," said Yan Shuangjun, a Tai Chi promoter in Wenxian county.

Since its creation, Tai Chi has developed various styles based on the Chen-style Tai Chi. In May 2006, Tai Chi was designated as a national intangible cultural heritage in China. In December 2020, it was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Today, Wenxian county is home to 52 martial arts centers with a total of 3,120 martial artists. The martial artists operate 4,030 martial arts halls and training centers both domestically and internationally. Additionally, Tai Chi is actively promoted online, with young masters offering courses to attract more participants.

Li Linghui is one of the Tai Chi masters promoting the art online. The daughter of a Tai Chi master, she began practicing Tai Chi as a child. By leveraging media platforms, Li has built a large young following through creative reinterpretations of traditional movements. As a 13th-generation inheritor of the Chen-style Tai Chi, she has gained over 800,000 followers on short-video platforms.

Chen Bing (third from left), a 12th-generation inheritor of the Chen-style Tai Chi, teaches Tai Chi to foreign students. (Photo/Xu Hongxing)

Tai Chi is widely practiced in schools across Wenxian county. On a high school playground, teachers and students practice Tai Chi together, accompanied by slow, calming music.

"As early as the 1990s, we promoted Tai Chi in PE classes, but back then, only traditional routines were practiced. Over time, teaching materials have gradually been updated and adapted for different age groups," said Wang Min, director of the Tai Chi Martial Arts Culture Development Center in Wenxian county.

Besides promoting Tai Chi exercises for children and Tai Chi square dancing, instructors have collaborated with fitness platforms to develop stress relief and fat-burning courses, advancing Tai Chi's popularity across all ages, said Wang.

Today, Tai Chi is practiced in over 150 countries and regions, with hundreds of millions of practitioners worldwide.