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在线翻译:
szdaily -> Campus -> 
High school student summons girls to practice martial arts
    2016-12-07  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

    Zhang Qian

    zhqcindy@163.com

    Lining up in the weekend morning sunshine and mimicking a coach’s gestures and motions, a group of school-age girls attracted the attention of many passers-by at Lianhua Hill Park on Sunday morning.

    These school girls, with the youngest aged 6, were practicing martial arts under the guidance of a local student named Chen Manqi, or Mandy Chen, a Grade-10 student from Shen Wai International School.

    Being a beneficiary of practicing traditional Chinese martial arts, Chen initiated a campaign to encourage girls to do more sports to improve their strength physically as well as to learn self-defense skills.

    From the original six or seven members, the group has grown rapidly to around 70 members after only one month.

    “I think doing any kind of sport is of great importance for everyone, especially for some girls who are physically weaker and do not take time to do sports as much as boys,” Chen told the Shenzhen Daily during the practice session on Sunday.

    Before learning martial arts from her coach, known as Xiong, Chen was an introverted girl who was not so confident. But since she started to practice martial arts, Chen began to be more active and felt a lot more confident than before.

    “I chose to practice martial arts because I thought it was cool at the beginning and as I learned more, I found more joy and benefits in doing it,” said Chen, “then I began to consider bringing more girls to practice martial arts.”

    Beside the lawn where the girls were waving their fists, jumping and running, their mothers stood in a circle watching and taking pictures with proud and encouraging smiles.

    “Actually, the mothers who decided to bring their girls to the martial arts group are paying a lot more attention to their daughters’ physical wellbeing than some other parents because a lot of students are busy attending various extra classes on the weekends,” said Mrs. Fu, Chen’s mother.

    A mother of a young girl said that her daughter enjoyed attending the group because, as the only child at home, the girl prefers to do sports with peers than with her parents or alone.

    “The girls are being active while having fun with others and enjoying the sunshine, rather than sitting in another classroom doing more work,” said the mother.

    Since the group was founded mainly for public interest, Chen and her mother only collect 50 yuan (US$7.28) from each member monthly to pay the coach who teaches the girls out of her support for Chen.

    There are three sessions each week now, with two being held on Saturdays and one on Sundays at two locations with one at Lianhua Hill Park and the other at a primary school in Luohu District.

    In response to the increasing number of members, Chen plans to open another session on Sunday. However, to find a voluntary martial arts coach who is willing to teach the girls on weekends is a challenge.

    “I am looking for coaches now and also trying to raise money to cover the training fees,” said Chen. The high school student said she might ask help from some educational institutions or training centers to sponsor her group.

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