The 11thNational Dragon & Lion Dance University Championship was held at the Guangxi Normal University from July 12 to 17. Altogether 1013 athletes from 55 universities of 16 provinces and direct-controlled municipalities including Beijing, Zhejiang, Hunan and Guangdong attended the competition. The CSU dragon & lion dance squad dispatched four teams to join the contest, which won titles under four categories.
The annual National Dragon & Lion Dance University Championship, which is hosted by the Federation of University Sports of China, aims to carry forward and promote the dragon & lion dance, a traditional Chinese sport which is competitive and artistic. This year’s event was divided into five categories-i.e. dragon dance (compulsory exercise and optional exercise), lion dance (optional Chinese southern lion and optional Chinese northern lion), tradition items (traditional dragon dance, traditional Chinese southern lion and traditional Chinese northern lion), lotus dragon and dragon dance teaching-for six groups, namely general universities, physical education colleges, vocational colleges, faculties, overseas students and postgraduates.
After six days of intense competition, under the guidance of Zhu Yuncheng and Feng Wei, the coaches of the team, the CSU dragon & lion dance squad achieved fruitful results. The male 9-person dragon dance team, which consists of He Rongxiang, Liu Wenkai, Wang Guanren, Li Zhengru, Wu Zhenfa, Zhang Yuntai, Qin Zuoyu, Fan Jiasheng, Sun Wenze, Qin Zetiao, Wang Zhiguo, Shi Rongxu and Sun Yichen, won the first place in the compulsory exercise of male dragon dance category A; the female 9-person dragon dance team, which consists of Hu Xuewen, Li Di, Zhang Yupu, Li Shen, Han Yajie, Li Guanxiu, Wang Jinjing, Feng Dandan, Li Fayan, Lin Xue, Wu Jinqiu, Fu Liangzhu, Lv Jianlan and Cao Danxi) won the first place in the compulsory exercise of female dragon dance category A; the Chinese northern lion team, which consists of Yang Zunmao, Yang Zhou, Bu Dejie, Wu Zongfei, Wang Kezhi, Tang Xiaohu, Sun Xiangsheng, Zhang Xinlei and Cao Hanyu, won the first place in the compulsory exercise of male Chinese northern lion category A; and the team of overseas students, including Malice, Kotok, Pensi, Gidas, Gyan, Meng Gang, Antony, Meng Qiang, Simon and Rich, won the first place in the optional exercise of overseas students’ dragon dance category.
In addition, the squad won multiple honors, including the first place in terms of the total score of male and female group A and the sportsmanship award. Zhu Yuncheng was granted the title of “Outstanding Coach”, and Hu Xuewen was granted the award of “Best Dragon Ball”.
It is noteworthy that the CSU male 9-person dragon dance team won the title of “Compulsory Exercise of Male Dragon Dance Category A” for the 11thconsecutive year, continuing its glorious record.
The CSU overseas students’ dragon dance team won the gold metal in the optional exercise of overseas students’ dragon dance category with a score of 8.24 points. Established in September 2015, the team now comprises over 20 students. Ten overseas students, who represented the team in this year’s event, come from Benin, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Rwanda, Mongolia and Gabon. Despite the significant difference in language and culture, they still share the passion and interest in the traditional Chinese sport of dragon dance. The overseas students joined the CSU dragon & lion dance squad in a 1-month centralized training program, which effectively enhanced their competitive level.
