"All participants are to adhere to the principles of sticking, connecting, adhering,
following, overcoming force by yielding to it, and emphasizing technical finesse
over force.
Thus, competitors are only permitted to employ the orthodox
Taijiquan techniques such as ward off, rollback, press, push, etc. that are
congruent to the preceding principles mentioned to unbalance their respective
opponents.
No wrestling, punching, kicking, or vicious sweeping is allowed.""No wrestling, punching, kicking, or vicious sweeping is allowed."
Which is something I never quite understand for those insisting that it should be included
or asking why its not....maybe because its "push hands" regardless of whether one agrees with it
or not.
As some one who's practiced taiji for a while, even judged some of the events.
I've come to my own conclusions about the practice and so can not endorse it as a competitive
method of testing skill feeling the skill of any taiji player should be tested in a context like any other
martial art allowing it to be seen for what it is and how it manifest itself.
A danger for many into push hands is the feeling that the skill sets transfer over to things they've yet to do
if they don't in their own practices. Some do, but most of those I've met really do not.
Others may find different.
When they attempt to engage out side of this context ,
the results are almost always the same "not good
"
for the most part because the context
by which the skill sets are tested are not
the the one in which they are expected to be used.
gotta fight if one expects to understand fighting