YO-YO Fever: China holds World Yo-Yo championship for the first time

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02:53

Yo-yos as a toy are a childhood memory for many people, but for others, it's a competitive sport that they take very seriously indeed. This year, the annual YoYo championships, organized by the International Yo-Yo Federation, are being held in China for the first time, and more than 500 contestants are taking part.

You may have played with a yo-yo before, but probably nothing like the pros at the World Yo-yo contest.

The contestants are from Asia, Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Australia. At the finals, each is given 3 minutes to show the best they've got to a crowd, ready to be impressed.

YI CHENGHAO CHINESE CONTESTANT "If you don't have perseverance and confidence, you can't make it. I normally practice up to six hours before a contest, from morning to afternoon, nonstop."

Competition yo-yo started in the 90s in the US and that's where the World Yo-Yo Contest had been held for many years. But the International YoYo Federation says with more and more new countries coming in to compete, it started moving the world championships around since 2014. And this year's contest in China could be the hardest for many contestants.

HIRONORI MII HEAD JUDGE, INTERNATIONAL YO-YO FEDERATION "We think there are more players in China than the rest of the world. Their player base is one of the biggest, and there are so many good new players coming up."

But it's not all about competition. 12-year-old Terrance has been yoyo-ing for about five years. He says it allows him to be creative and that's what he likes about it.

TERRANCE WANT CANADIAN CONTESTANT "If you do one thing, that will be really boring. So if you do many possibilities, like other types of tricks, that'll be really fun."

DAVE GEIGLE CEO, IYOYO "You see all these kids that have new ideas, new styles, new elements. It's just interesting you can have these new things every single day. That's why it's so entertaining."

XU MENGQI SHANGHAI "The contest is no doubt a showcase of the most stunning yo-yo tricks by the world's best players, but yo-yo isn't just a game. Many believe it's a sports with its own health benefits."

GAO YU ALPHA ENTERTAINMENT "Maybe a lot of people saw yoyos as just a toy in the beginning, but as the culture developed, and more people started playing and competing in China, and it's gradually evolved into an extreme hand sport that helps train your hand-eye coordination. "

You can already find players less than 10 years old. And as the performance sport gets broadcast live and shared online, yoyos may well become more popular among the younger generation. Xu Mengqi, CGTN, Shanghai.