STORY: Iraqi woman enthusiastic about Shaolin Kung Fu
SHOOTING TIME: July 14, 2024
DATELINE: July 16, 2024
LENGTH: 0:02:03
LOCATION: ZHENGZHOU, China
CATEGORY: SPORTS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the training
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant

STORYLINE:

Sewa Xasraw, an Iraqi national, has been enthusiastic about martial arts since childhood.

She began to learn Shaolin Kung Fu at 18.

This year, she and her husband visited Shaolin Temple for the first time, as they both participated in the finals of a global Shaolin Kung Fu contest at the temple in China's Henan.

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant
"It's my childhood dream to come to the Shaolin Temple and do some training with a big master."

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant
"Before I started (learning Shaolin Kung Fu), I didn't feel powerful. When I started, day by day, I felt it. I started (learning Shaolin Kung Fu) at 18 (years old). Because my father didn't let me start, he thought it (could) sometimes (be) painful for me. But after that, he said to me, you must go to the Shaolin Temple to learn more."

SOUNDBITE 3 (English): SEWA XASRAW, Iraqi participant
"It's our first time come to China, and to the Shaolin Temple. We got here in two days, it's about 13 hours in airplane, a long way.
I chose Shaolin Kung Fu for changing my mind, my body. In my life, Kung Fu is the first job. Me and my husband have a Shaolin Kung Fu school in our country, (with) sometimes 70, sometimes 90, sometimes 100 (students in it).
The masters in our country (have) only seen some films, some videos. Shaolin Kung Fu is more powerful and more difficult. It's not easy. I want to bring the real Shaolin (Kung Fu) to my country.
I want to say, follow your dream. It doesn't matter if you are a girl or a boy, old or young. Just follow your dream, one day, you'll see you are successful. Like today, yes!"

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Zhengzhou, China.
(XHTV)