Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Over 300 athletes participated in Uzbekistan Wushu Championship held in Tashkent on April 3-4 at Uzbekistan Sports Complex. Among these athletes are trainees of Forum Junior Sport Complex who have clinched prizes and first places. According to the jury, one such promising athlete, with the highest score (9) in his age category, is Dmitry Lee.

The competitions included the following styles: Changquan, Tai chi chuan, hand-to-hand combat, sword wielding and southern style. Among the trainees of Forum Junior Sport Complex who have emerged as winners are:

1st place
Dmitry Lee (12 years old) – 2 first places (hand-to-hand combat and sword wielding)
Yelizaveta Kadirova (9 years old) - 2 first places (Tai chi chuan, sword wielding)
Marina Syakacheva (15 years old) - 2 first places (Tai chi chuan, sword wielding)
Nargiza Sarsenbayeva (10 years old) - Tai chi chuan
Ilyor Kudratullayev (12 years old) - Changquan

2nd place
Madina Fazilova (12 years old) - Changquan
Mariya Nizamutdinova (35 years old) - Changquan

3rd place
Bekhruz Rasulov (6 years old) - Changquan
Mukhriddin Uzoqov (12 years old) - Southern
Javokhir Ibragimov (12 years old) - Southern
Shakhnoza Qosimova (10 years old) - Tai chi chuan
Nilufar Pardayeva (24 years old) - Tai chi chuan

Wus-hu is known to help develop dexterity, strength, endurance, speedy reaction and to develop coordination and master self-defence skills. All these qualities could be observed at the championship with performances that turned out to be spectacular and showed a high-level preparation.

The championship has become the first stage of preparations for the Asian Games which will start on 12 November 2010 in Guangzhou (China) and the World Championship which will take place in December this year in Singapore.

The Fund Forum carries out a great deal of work to further develop and boost the mastery of athletes and accords special attention to sports projects. In 2005, the Fund Forum established Forum Junior Sport, a sporting complex for children, where presently around 200 young athletes are being trained in wushu and callisthenics by Uzbekistan’s leading coaches. In April 2007, the Fund set up Champions’ Forum, a special account that makes available grants to support young and promising athletes. Over 200 athletes have been awarded grants since the establishment of the Program. In 2008, a sports complex with the same name, Champions’ Forum, was founded where leading coaches train young promising athletes and prepare them for international competitions in callisthenics, wushu, judo and boxing.