Tai CHi Sparring.

**Pat Pintados** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 3:24pm

No.. not a joke post. An old clip I came across of Taichi guys actually non-compliant contact fighting.. first video I've seen like this.. 1988. I think I want to hump that Cynthia Ming.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mc4YKgNpyBc

It's no Thai boxing, but I think it's interesting none the less.

**Diesel_tke** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 3:30pm

You should look in the CMA forum. IIF did a thread with TONS of video of all kinds of full contact sparring.

**superninjagod** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 3:41pm

Originally Posted by Pat Pintados

No.. not a joke post. An old clip I came across of Taichi guys actually non-compliant contact fighting.. first video I've seen like this.. 1988. I think I want to hump that Cynthia Ming.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mc4YKgNpyBc

It's no Thai boxing, but I think it's interesting none the less.

Interesting, I didn't see much tai chi during the fights, people in the vids seem to wave their arms around magically just before they fought. But when they fought it looked like crappy kickboxing. This seems to be very typical of most MA's that don't regularly spar that then try to spar

**Cuchulain** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 3:56pm

Tai Chi is mainly a wrestling art. That's why you haven't seen them spar much. It's like expecting Judo-ka to spar.

**Sri Hanuman** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 4:01pm

Originally Posted by Cuchulain

Tai Chi is mainly a wrestling art.

True. But it still has elements of striking.

That's why you haven't seen them spar much. It's like expecting Judo-ka to spar.

It's called Randori, and it's done in every class.

Same applies to any decent Taijiquan class that focuses on fighting. For someone with Sanda in his style field, you should know that.

**Rivington** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 4:15pm

Sam Masich's catch-and-throw at around 1:39 is a textbook tai chi move. Same at 1:50, and the little sweep at 1:56. We've shown this video a bit before, though I don't think it's ever gotten its own thread. I think Jack Rusher nailed it when he suggested that a lot of the players were pretty good at tui shou but hadn't practiced much san shou.

**Cuchulain** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 4:22pm

Originally Posted by Sri Hanuman

It's called Randori, and it's done in every class.

Same applies to any decent Taijiquan class that focuses on fighting. For someone with Sanda in his style field, you should know that.

I do know that.

I wouldn't call Randori sparring though. Nor would I call wrestling sparring. Nor would I call push hands sparring.

I think we agree it's just a difference in terminology.

**nomamao** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 4:26pm

There's some great push hand videos in the Chinese Martial Art Forum. The vid above is not quality taichi sparring IMO.

**superninjagod** · Posted On: 5/14/2010 4:56pm

Originally Posted by Cuchulain

I do know that.

I wouldn't call Randori sparring though. Nor would I call wrestling sparring. Nor would I call push hands sparring.

I think we agree it's just a difference in terminology.

Sparring is a very poor choice of words in the context that you are trying to use it.