The art of swordsmanship was fairly widespread in ancient China, said Katsiadakis, which later evolved as a separate combat sport and as a major component of Chinese martial arts.

He highly acclaimed Wuxi's efforts in organizing the tournament, hailing it "a big surprise" for him. "For the first time the podium is electronic, you can see everything, including the names, scores, and timing on the giant LED screen. The venue for the final is unbelievably good." he said.

The championships, running until July 27, is seeing roughly 1,370 of the world’s top fencers from 108 countries and regions competing in 12 individual and team events in epee, foil, and sabre.

In November 2015, Wuxi was awarded the rights to host the 2018 World Fencing Championships by the FIE, beating the Japanese city of Fukuoka with 69 votes against 47, to become the first city in China to hold the event.

The number of fencing athletes registered in China thus far has topped more than 1,000. About 100 fencing clubs and training centers are spread across the country with over 10,000 trainees, official data shows.