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Exercise groups compete for space as Luxun Park reopens

Various groups of people rushed into Luxun Park today to stake their claim to precious real estate in order to do their morning exercises as the popular green space reopened after a 12-month renovation project was completed.

A group of tai chi boxers picked out a vacant spot when the park opened at 5am only for a group of ballroom dancers to arrive at the same time.

The dancers created a boundary by putting clothes and bags on the ground to create a circle. They stared fiercely to scare away anyone interested in “their territory.”

Tai chi master Liu, 65, wasn’t rattled by the ladies, mostly 60 years old and above.

Liu’s group, despite having fewer people, began practicing tai chi beside the dancers and eventually broke into the territory.

“It is our only chance to occupy a place for morning exercises, since our former spot has been revamped,” said Liu, who has taught the martial art in the park for two decades.

The dancers retaliated by turning up the music volume to disturb the rhythm of the tai chi boxers.

However, Liu, a former Shanghai tai chi boxing champion, said it made no difference and he and his group members were able to attain “inner peace.”

More than 13,000 people, mostly groups coming to exercise or socialize, entered the century-old park in Hongkou District within three hours to claim their spaces.

For many decades the park has been home to more than 50 exercise and social groups, all of which lay claim to specific sites on certain days and times. Some of these spots no longer exist due to the revamp, leaving several groups “homeless.”

“We will fight eternally and not give up even a single inch of land at the beginning and then we can own it the rest of the time,” Liu told Shanghai Daily.

No major conflict occurred among the groups as some 150 security guards and volunteers had been dispatched for peacekeeping, said Zhang Xinhua, the park’s Party chief.

Police officers were also seen patrolling the park with security guards to disperse any potential conflict.

“We will keep the peacekeeping force for at least a week,” Zhang said.

A British garden designer created Luxun Park in 1896. It was later dedicated to the famous writer Lu Xun, and to this day is home to his tomb and a museum about his life.




 

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