Shaolin Kung Fu is one of the main martial art styles in China. It is named after the Shaolin Temple.

Shaolin-style boxing generally refers to the bare hand forms, weapon forms and sparring. Among the bare hand forms, the “Seven Star Fist” and “Long Guard the Heart and Mind Gate Fist” stand out. They don't have many moves but both are powerful and practical. In Shaolin Kung Fu, the main hand position is the Dragon Claw, and the practitioners typically use circling blocks outward and inward and the dragon stance. When it comes to weapons, the Shaolin broadsword and stick techniques are fierce and strong.

Liu Haike's family has been practicing Shaolin Kung Fu for 10 generations. Liu started to practice kung fu with his father even before he could remember, when he didn't have to herd sheep and work on the farm. “Practicing kung fu gave me a fit body and a strong mind to overcome all difficulties,” said Liu. “I also become more humble when I practice, because I know there's always somebody better than me and I need to improve myself all the time.”

Shaolin-style boxing is now mostly inherited by martial art schools and Liu works as a manager and a professional coach. He was a coach of the 2008 Beijing Olympics special training team for Chinese kickboxing, and coach of China's national kickboxing team. He now works as the chief coach of the Henan Chinese kickboxing team.

“I feel that many techniques of Shaolin-style boxing can be used in Chinese kickboxing,” said Liu. “But Chinese kickboxing and traditional martial arts have different rules because modern sports care more about the practitioners' safety. But we can still apply the concept of traditional kung fu, like ‘you either attack or defend' in modern Chinese kickboxing, creating a new training method which works well in actual fighting. Till now we've trained many skilled athletes.”

Under Liu's training, a couple of renowned Chinese kickboxing athletes emerged in Henan Province. During the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, his pupil Zhang Shuaike won China's first gold medal at the 56-kilogram level in Olympic history. In March 2014, as the coach of China's national kickboxing team, his team members won three gold medals in the 5th World Junior Martial Arts Championship. In August 2014, his team won four gold medals in Chinese kickboxing in the Youth Olympic Games. In 2018, three pupils of Liu brought back 3 gold medals from the Asian Games.

On the other hand, Liu promotes martial arts as a performance. The performances of his students have been on the stage of 16 of CCTV's Spring Festival Galas, as well as the opening/closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games, Asian Games, and the Youth Olympic Games.

“Teaching martial arts is a heavy responsibility that requires us to inherit and pass on the ancestors' knowledge,” Liu said. “We need to bring it to a larger stage. We need to cultivate more pupils. I hope that someday, Kung Fu could become an official Olympic sport.”

Director: Lei Rong, Zhou Yueqing

Editor: Gao Xingzi

Filmed by: Hou Xinqiang

Designer: Yu Peng

Article Written by: Zhu Siqi

Copy Editor: Katrin Buchenbacher 

Producer: Wen Yaru

Chief Editor: Lin Dongwei

Supervisor: Pang Xinhua