在中国和全世界许多其他国家有众多男女老幼练习武术。但它何时才会成为奥运会比赛项目？

武术涉及多个体育领域，但是竞技武术按形式划分――参赛者从姿态、击拳、跳跃和其他动作――以及徒手或持中国传统武器的格斗等方面接受评判。

现代武术重在健身和运动。自1991年以来，每两年举办一次世界武术锦标赛（World Wushu Championships），有56个国家参加。

上图中，2011年10月在土耳其安卡拉（Ankara）举办的第十一届世界武术锦标赛的四分之一决赛上，土耳其的芳达·蒂坎（Funda Tikan）对阵乌克兰的达科希拿·塔季扬娜（Dakhina Tetyana）。

在国际奥委会的支持下，中国在2008年北京奥运会期间组织了国际武术活动。虽然武术没有列入2012年伦敦奥运会，但武术迷和武功演员李连杰（Jet Li）等知名支持者认为，国际武术联合会（International Wushu Federation）将会实现让武术进入未来奥运会的正式比赛项目。

Wushu dates back to the 5th century, but what will be the date of its official Olympic premiere?

The traditional martial art of wushu is practiced by the young and old in China and many other countries around the globe. But when will it come to the Olympics?

While wushu comprises a wide range of physical disciplines, competitive wushu is divided into forms — in which competitors are judged on stances, punches, jumps and other maneuvers — and sparring, either barehanded or with traditional Chinese weapons.

The focus of modern wushu is on fitness and athleticism. The World Wushu Championships have been held every two years since 1991, with participation from 56 nations.

Above, Funda Tikan of Turkey fights Dakhina Tetyana of Ukraine during the women's quarterfinal of the 11th World Wushu Championships in Ankara,Turkey, in October 2011.

The Chinese organized an international wushu event during the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the blessing of the International Olympic Committee. Although it is not on the roster for the 2012 London Olympics, fans and high-profile supporters such as martial-arts film star Jet Li believe the International Wushu Federation will be successful in its bid to make wushu an official part of future Olympics.