When will everybody be kung fu fighting?

BEIJING (Reuters) - You've seen it in the "Matrix". Bruce Lee is its most famous proponent. An animated panda tickled audiences this year. Now practitioners hope that wushu, more commonly known as kung fu, will be contested at the Olympics.

Wushu's backers are trying to cram the millennia-old art on to a packed Olympics calendar, arguing a growing following. They claim a victory for a sport that for the first time held an unofficial competition on the sidelines of the Games in Beijing.

China's growing clout, hit films such as "Kung Fu Panda" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and international stars Jet Li and Jackie Chan have helped the martial art lure devotees from Vietnam to Sweden.

"They have boxing at the Olympics. They have taekwondo. This is all that in one package," said Sarah Ponce, 32, doffing her gloves and vest after a sparring match. She took three months off her job to train and paid her own way from the United States to China.

But it might take more than a decade before wushu's signature whirling kicks and lightning punches will be seen at the Games. The sport needs to carve out a wider professional presence, train referees and find funding before it can get a stamp of approval from the International Olympic Committee.

Sports for the 2012 Olympics have been decided and wushu is not shortlisted for 2016. Its advocates are holding out for 2020.

The Games in Beijing showcased 28 sports. In London, the number will fall to 26 after the exit of baseball and softball. And a slew of other sports will be vying for a place in 2016, such as squash, rugby, golf and karate.

GRACEFUL MARTIAL ART

The International Wushu Federation is one of the IOC's 31 recognised federations along with cricket, golf, karate, rugby and squash, meaning a spot on the programme is not impossible.

"Wushu will need to prepare for submitting a strong file in 2011," said Jan Fransoo, president of the Association of the IOC Recognised International Sports Federation. The 2020 Games would be determined seven years before, he added.

Ever since Bruce Lee wielded his double-section staff, more popularly known as the nunchuks, wushu has evolved into a graceful art similar to gymnastic floor exercises.

This week in China's capital, practitioners compete in a range of events: Sanshou or full-contact sparring akin to Thai kickboxing; Nanquan or graceful somersaults and punching manoeuvres; Daoshu, or flashy Chinese sabres.

"We know it's not easy, but we're working quite hard. We are widening our worldwide presence and promoting wushu as a sport internationally by having more demonstrations abroad," said Han Jianming, spokesman for Chinese Wushu Association in Beijing.

The sport needed better management and more funding, however.

"I'd like to see more international cooperation and more events in different countries," said Mike Altman, Ponce's trainer at a U.S. athletic club. "I'd like to see better organisation."

Tat Mau Wong, vice-president of the U.S.A. Wushu-Kung Fu Federation, admitted that cash was hard to come by in a country that swears by basketball, baseball and football.

Still, some are happy to make it to the Beijing Olympics.

"Although it is not an official Olympic event, this is the first time that wushu has come so close to the Olympics," said Ma Lingjuan, ranked first in a weapons competition.

"This is a great opportunity to show the world wushu."

(Additional reporting and editing by Edwin Chan)

(For more stories visit our multimedia website "2008 Summer Olympics" here; and see our blog at blogs.reuters.com/china)