| World Taiji Day successfully organized in Malta | ||||||||||||||
| 2007/04/28 |
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Chinese Ambassador to Malta Mr. Chai Xi, Mr. Justice Lino Farrugia Sacco, President of MOC, Mr. Joseph Cassar, Secretary General of MOC and Mr. Mario Cardona, Secretary of MJF attended the World Taiji Day Celebration in this beautiful morning in Sliema.
World Taiji Day was first organized voluntarily by Taiji Quan lovers across the world in 1999 and now has become an annual event held on the last Saturday of April each year globally. On the day, Taiji Quan lovers of each time zone start practicing Taiji at 10am sharp of their local time, which means that around the clock, no matter it is at daytime or night, there are people practicing Taiji across the world.
Today marks the 9th World Taiji Day. On this special day, it is glad to observe the celebrations of the Day in Malta, an event jointly organized by Malta Judo Federation and China Cultural Centre in Malta. Ambassador Chai extended, on behalf of the Chinese Embassy in Malta, the warmest congratulations to the organizers and the most sincere thanks to Malta Olympic Committee, Malta Judo Federation, Sliema Local Council and all those who had made the event a reality. Ambassador Chai's special thanks and congratulations also went to Malta Judo Federation, to which Wushu was affiliated as Mr. Mario Cardona declared in the morning and in which Wushu becomes a new and dynamic member of the family.
Chinese Wushu enjoys a time-honored history and rich cultural connotations. It is a valuable historic and cultural legacy of the Chinese nation and nations all over the world. Over the evolution of Wushu in the past hundreds of years, a great variety of styles and schools were developed, among which Taiji Quan represents the most typical and popular one. In China, early morning everyday, you will find numerous Taiji Quan practitioners in gardens, parks, squares, groves or at seaside. Taiji Quan is easily accessible to people of all ages, genders and physical abilities. Seemingly soft and supple, Taiji Quan is in fact a genre emphasizing both health building and attack & defense and one reflecting a great deal the profundity of traditional Chinese philosophy. Ambassador Chai appreciated very much the approach of the MOC and MJF in introducing Chinese Wushu from Taiji Quan as the basis. As a Taiji Quan lover, Ambassador Chai is overjoyed to see that there are quite a few Maltese friends practicing Taiji, and he welcomes and expects more to join Taiji family.
Wushu, as sports, is widely loved all over the world for its multi-faceted roles in health, defense, psychology and entertainment. At present, there are already 112 members within the International Wushu Federation and it is hoped that the 113th member could come from Malta. In November this year, Beijing will host the 7th World Wushu Championship. It's a golden opportunity for Malta to send representatives to participate in the event.
The setting-up of the Wushu Association in Malta would be a significant achievement in the sports exchange of our two countries. Ambassador Chai believes that the spread of Wushu will be instrumental in promoting a better understanding of China and the Chinese culture as well as the bilateral exchange and cooperation of culture and sports. The Chinese Embassy stands ready to work with our Maltese friends in providing any support necessary for the development of Wushu in Malta. At the celebration this morning Ambassador Chai also announced that the Chinese Embassy in Malta and the Chinese Wushu Association would donate to Malta Judo Federation in the near future a number of equipment to facilitate Wushu practice.
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