Guizhou Province clinched the gold medal in the standard crossbow mixed team final at the 12th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of the People's Republic of China. The event took place in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province, on Monday.
Three-time participant Liu Xingyu played a pivotal role by scoring nine points on his last shot, bringing Guizhou to an impressive total of 191 points. Crossbow shooting has long been a favorite in southwest Chinese provinces like Yunnan and Guizhou, as well as the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The Miao and Yi ethnic groups are renowned for their exceptional skills in this sport.
Speaking to CGTN Sports Scene's Zhu Mandan, Liu shared his connection to the sport: "I'm from the Miao ethnic group. We used to use the crossbow for hunting, but now we just use it for sporting events, and as a recreational sport. Shooting a crossbow is more like archery, except that it has a trigger like a rifle."
Liu emphasized the importance of preserving his ancient culture through sports, stating, "Competing in this event promotes cultural and sporting exchanges among ethnic minority groups. And this is a great opportunity to further develop traditional sports as well, so I'm very happy to be a part of this for the third time, and I hope there are many more to come."
Guizhou secured their second title in the sport when Wang Renai won the traditional crossbow men's standing position final on Sunday.
