Mind games at the Winter Games?

Supporters are pushing for the centuries-old mahjong to be demonstrated in Beijing in 2022.

MAHJONG, an ancient Chinese game which is always associated with gambling, may see its negative image being laundered.

It was reported that this three- or four-player tile game could possibly be recognised as a sport event in the future.

To add joy to the cheering fans, efforts are being made for it to be part of the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games as an indoor demonstration event.

The news came after mahjong was accepted as the sixth international mind sport by the International Mind Sports Association (IMSA). The others are chess, bridge, go, draughts and xiangqi (Chinese chess).

IMSA president Chen Zelan told The Paper, an online news portal in China, that discussions were being held to apply to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to list mind sports as demonstration events at the Winter Games.

This was in line with IOC’s hope of expanding participation of the games to countries without natural weather conditions for developing winter sports, she added.

But Chen was not too optimistic, saying there was still a long way to go towards achieving the goal as China had not officially recognised mahjong as a sport.

She pointed out that bridge and chess would have a higher chance of being played if IOC accepted the idea of adding mind sports to the Winter Olympics.

“Mahjong International League (an international governing body of mahjong founded in 2015) hopes to remove the gambling tag from this traditional game,” Chen told China’s national news agency Xinhua.

Mahjong is a much-loved pastime in China and it is so popular that holiday makers bring the tiles with them wherever they go.

Fans were spotted setting up their own tables and chairs in public swimming pools and in water theme parks to beat the summer heat while enjoying their favourite game.

I did something like this once when a friend brought the tiles to Langkawi on our holiday. Not wanting to miss the nice weather, we decided to play it by the side of the hotel’s swimming pool, LOL.

It was quite embarrassing during the set-up but once the game started, nothing could stop us. Well, if others can play card games at public places, I don’t see why mahjong can’t be played.

“If mahjong is competed at the Winter Games, the entire nation will be in Beijing,” said a netizen. (In a demonstration event, the winner’s medals are not included in the official results.)

He was not exaggerating. The Chinese’ love for mahjong could be seen from this old saying, “Where there is water, there are Chinese. Where there are Chinese, there are mahjong and Teresa Teng’s songs.”

The Chinese can build the “fourwall city” anytime and anywhere – indoor and outdoor parks, waterfalls, restaurants, at wedding banquets, on boat rides, while queuing up for food or shopping, and even in flood waters.

“Every time I call my mum, she is playing mahjong. She can join this competition at the Winter Olympics,” complained Weibo user Mr Bean.

Jose Damiani, the founder of IMSA, told The Paper that mahjong game rules should be standardised if it is to be considered an international mind sport.

Currently, the game has many styles, scoring methods and rules. The number of tiles used also varies, ranging from 80 to 156 tiles.

Malaysians prefer the three-corner mahjong, which uses 80 tiles and four fei-es (jokers). This “mini mahjong” plays faster and is easier to learn compared to the traditional four-corner game, which has dozens of winning combinations.

Pantang-larang (taboos) are part of the “rules”. Mahjong players will not give or lend money to others because they believe this will give away their luck, while the bystanders are also not allowed to pat the players’ shoulders.

It is commonly believed that a person has three lights – one on each shoulder and the third on the forehead – that boost luck and ong (prosperity) energy. Patting on the shoulders will put out these lights.

There are an abundance of legends about the origin of mahjong, and one of them is related to Admiral Zheng He, the great explorer and diplomat from the Ming Dynasty who led seven expeditions to the south and west, including Melaka in the 14th century.

According to Baidu Baike (Chinese Wikipedia), Zheng He invented the game to pass his free time with the sailors on one of their voyages.

A senior general, surnamed Ma, was so good at the game that Zheng He named it after him and called the game Ma Da Jiang Jun (General Ma) game. It was later shortened to Ma Jiang, which is mahjong in Chinese.

The game has spread to the rest of the world with more and more non-Chinese enjoying it now, but players from China, Hong Kong and Japan still dominate the podiums at major tournaments including the World Mahjong Championship and World Series of Mahjong.

There is also a list of mobile apps on the game but nothing can beat the feeling of rubbing the tiles and slapping them hard on the table, followed with shouts of peng (a match of three identical tiles), gang (a set of four) or hu (a win).

Mahjong International League hopes to remove the gambling tag from this traditional game.

Chen Zelan