Andrii Koval of Ukraine performs during men's Daoshu (broadsword play) of the Beijing 2008 Wushu Competition in Beijing, China, Aug. 21, 2008. Andrii Koval ranked 8th in men's Daoshu competition with a score of 9.35. [Xinhua]

"Wushu will need to prepare for submitting a strong file in 2011," Jan Fransoo, president of the Association of the IOC Recognized International Sports Federation, said.

The 2020 Games will be determined seven years before.

Ever since Bruce Lee wielded his double-section staff, more popularly known as the nunchuks, wushu has evolved into a graceful art similar to gymnastic floor exercises.

This week in Beijing, practitioners compete in a range of events: sanshou or full-contact sparring akin to Thai boxing; nanquan or graceful somersaults and punching manoeuvres; daoshu, or flashy Chinese sabers.

"We know it's not easy, but we're working quite hard. We are widening our worldwide presence and promoting wushu as a sport internationally by having more demonstrations abroad," Han Jianming, spokesman for the Chinese Wushu Association, said.

Tat Mau Wong, vice-president of the USA Wushu-Kung Fu Federation, admitted that cash is hard to come by in a country that swears by basketball, baseball and football.

Still, some are happy to make it to the Beijing Olympics.

"Although it is not an official Olympic event, this is the first time wushu has come so close to the Olympics," Ma Lingjuan, ranked first in a weapons competition, said.

"This is a great opportunity to show the world wushu."

Agencies