Top bodybuilding athletes draw inspirations from training on a 1,000-year-old cultural site.

Traditional Tibetan dance, dress and cuisine are just some of the elements that have made the lifestyle of the ethnic group so fascinating. It is this rich culture that inspired the members of the Chinese National Women's Fitness Team, featuring some of the country's top gym-based athletes, to choose the Ganbao Tibetan stone village in Aba Tibetan and Qiang autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province, as their ideal training ground. On July 15, the team arrived in the 1,000-year-old village for a 10-day training session. While basking in the warm welcome from the villagers, the athletes have benefited from learning about the rich local culture that features the Boba Sengen, a renowned variation of the traditional dances that were included in China's National Intangible Heritage list in 2008.

Above and below: Athletes pose in local costumes. Photos by Xia Chunqiu

(China Daily 08/02/2014 page19)