BEIJING, March 21 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,200 Tai Chi practitioners from nine countries and 10 Chinese provincial-level regions gathered on Saturday at Wuyi Mountain, a UNESCO World Heritage site, for the main event marking UNESCO's inaugural International Taijiquan Day.
The mass demonstration was the centerpiece of events held across China, with special celebrations also taking place at the historic homes of the martial art, including Wudang Mountain in central China's Hubei Province, Wenxian in Henan Province, and Handan in north China's Hebei Province.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated March 21 as the annual International Taijiquan Day at the 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference in Uzbekistan on Nov. 5, 2025.
Lidia Brito, UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences, said at the meeting that Taijiquan illustrates how traditional sports and games can foster peace and serve as a bridge between people and across generations.
This marks the first time a martial art has been recognized with an official international day within the United Nations system, underscoring Taijiquan's status as both an intangible cultural heritage and a global fitness practice embraced by millions worldwide.
"The date choice around the Chinese solar term Chunfen conveys Tai Chi's core value: the pursuit of dynamic balance between life and nature," said Ekarat Janrathitikarn, dean of the Maritime Silk Road Confucius Institute in Thailand, who has practiced Taijiquan for nearly 10 years.
Chunfen, or the vernal equinox, occurs when the Sun is positioned directly above the Earth's equator, bringing day and night into equal length and falling between March 19 and 22 on the Gregorian calendar. This year, it fell on March 20. The perfect balance of light and dark reflects the core philosophy of Tai Chi.
Janrathitikarn calls himself a devoted fan of Tai Chi. "The school introduced Taijiquan into its curriculum a year after its founding in 2015. Through the course, students not only learn the exercise but also better understand the Chinese ways of thinking, which many alumni said has led to their career success," he said.
As a core concept in Chinese philosophy that first appeared in documents of the Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC), Tai Chi pursues harmony between humanity and nature and between body and mind.
Taijiquan refers to a martial art that puts the Tai Chi philosophical ideas into physical practice, which is generally believed to have been formed in the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
According to the UNESCO website, Taijiquan is a traditional physical practice characterized by relaxed, circular movements that work in concert with breath regulation and the cultivation of a righteous and neutral mind. Safeguarding it would increase its visibility and dialogue about the diverse ways Taijiquan is practised by different communities.
"Today, Taijiquan serves as a new bridge for cultural exchange and mutual learning," said Lin Qiu, deputy mayor of Nanping City, which administers the Wuyi Mountain area.
By hosting 28 cultural and tourist activities for the First International Taijiquan Day, the city aims to promote Tai Chi-themed training while boosting health and wellness tourism, leveraging its scenic landscapes and rich tea culture.
China's Tai Chi was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2020. Better known in the West as Tai Chi, Taijiquan is the transliteration of the Chinese internal martial art with various styles.
Yang Zhenhe, a representative inheritor of the Yang-style Taijiquan, a national intangible cultural heritage, has spent years adapting the traditional martial art to make it accessible and suitable for young practitioners.
His daughter, Yang Lifen, has been dedicated to introducing the adapted 38-move Yang-style Taijiquan to schools in Handan, Hebei Province, the historic home of the martial art, where the routine has now become a mandatory part of physical education classes.
"The Yang-style Taijiquan covers boxing as well as weapon forms with the sword, spear and cudgel. Promoting this intangible cultural heritage is about passing it on, not just performing it," she said.
Nowadays, on streets or in alleys and parks in Handan, people young and old are seen practicing the exercise alone or in groups.
Chen Bing, president of the Chenjiagou International Tai Chi Academy in Chenjiagou, Wenxian County, Henan, is currently on a teaching tour in Europe.
He told Xinhua that he and many other Chen-style Taijiquan inheritors are dedicated to preserving and expanding the cultural scope of Tai Chi. To date, the Chenjiagou International Tai Chi Academy has established more than 30 branches across over 20 countries worldwide.
"Taijiquan is not just a form of exercise, but a spirit and a living style reshaping my body, mind and soul," said Dionysios Paraschos, a Greek disciple of Chen. "The instructors taught me to listen to my body and relax the muscles when I hadn't realized they were tense."