China to unveil first professional Wushu Sanda league

China’s matrial arts administrator announced last week that the first professional Wushu Sanda league will be unveiled in Beijing next January.

According to the organizers, the league's first season will adopt six weight classes and fixtures include openers in January, qualifier, knock-outs, point game and finals at year end.

World of Sanda, the first professional league of its kind, will select top professional Sanda fighters from the 1,700 registered fighters nationwide.

"The reason why we have opened the league is to revive the traditional Chinese martial arts…through marketing and experience from China's basketball league and football league, we are aiming to create more Chinese professional fighters," said Zhang Qiuping, head of the China’s martial arts governing body under the General Administration of Sport of China.

Wushu Sanda is both an exhibition and a full-contact sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts.

Source: China Daily