The 10th World Junior Wushu Championships is underway in full swing in Tianjin. As the world's highest-standard junior Wushu competition, it coincides with the 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games, marking a crucial juncture for Wushu to be in line with the Olympic Games. On the first competition day, Zhang Yuping, the Secretary General of the International Wushu Federation (IWUF), gave an exclusive interview. She elaborated on the layout and practices of IWUF for advancing the globalization of Wushu around core topics including the event's connection with the Youth Olympics, youth Wushu cultivation, cultural communication, and the empowerment brought by the Tianjin event.

This World Junior Wushu Championships is a vital access pathway to the Dakar Youth Olympic Games and a key qualification tournament after Wushu was included in the official schedule of the Youth Olympic Games for the first time, bearing prominent milestone significance. Zhang Yuping introduced noted that event registration represents the preliminary qualification for athletes to participate in the Wushu events of the Youth Olympics, and 48 outstanding athletes will be selected to advance to the Dakar Youth Olympic Games through this year’s championships. The events of the championships are closely aligned with those of the Youth Olympics, focusing on four most widely popular events: Men's and Women's Changquan All-around, and Men's and Women's Taijiquan All-around. This is not about limiting a single event, but driving the promotion of the entire Wushu system through a targeted approach, laying a solid foundation for more Wushu events to enter high-end international competitions.

The IWUF is building a comprehensive youth Wushu cultivation system covering technical, educational and cultural dimensions. Anti-doping education has been incorporated into the entry requirements of the event, and all athletes are required to complete online assessments to foster the concept of fair play from an early age. Meanwhile, Wushu moral education and traditional cultural values run through the entire process. Zhang Yuping stated that practicing Wushu is not merely about mastering skills, but more importantly, inheriting the moral ethics of traditional Chinese Wushu and the spirit of the rule of law, making young athletes to be both competitive sports performers and envoys for the promotion of Wushu culture.

Tianjin's profound Wushu heritage has provided strong support for the event, reinforcing mutual synergy between the event and the city. Zhang Yuping noted that Tianjin was selected as the host city for its solid Wushu foundation. For instance, the Wushu spirit of Huo Yuanjia and the world-renowned Chin Woo Athletic Association, making Tianjin boast an advantaged advantageous environment for Wushu promotion and facilitate the overseas communication of Wushu culture. At the same time, the event has energized the internationalization of Tianjin's Wushu culture and promoted the innovative inheritance of traditional Wushu culture, bringing Tianjin Wushu to the world stage.

Zhang Yuping emphasized that the oriental philosophy embodied in Chinese Wushu is highly consistent with the Olympic spirit. The concepts of peace, harmony and co-prosperity complement the Olympic motto of "Faster, Higher, Stronger, Together", enriching the modern Olympic spirit. In the future, the IWUF will break away from the single competitive development model, expand cooperation with international organizations such as UNESCO, and raise the popularity of Wushu among the general public. By boosting both its popularization and competitive level, the IWUF aims to implement Wushu’s inclusion in major international sporting events.

Reflecting on the development journey, from Tianjin hosting the 2nd International Wushu Invitational Tournament in 1986, to the current World Junior Wushu Championships becoming the world's largest and highest-level youth Wushu event, Zhang Yuping frankly stated that the popularity and influence of Wushu among young people across the globe have reached a new level, which is the fruit of years of in-depth efforts. In the future, the IWUF will continue to take events as the link and culture as the core and build a global exchange platform for youth Wushu athletes, promoting the high-quality international development of Wushu and spreading the excellent traditional Chinese culture to the world.