Place of birth: Beijing
Nationality: People’s Republic of China
Date of birth: March 4, 1946
Age: 69
Height: 1.88 meters on average for males
Active areas: Beijing, abroad
Name: Honor Guard of the People’s Liberation Army
Abbreviation: Honor Guard
Family members: Honor Guard, Female Honor Guard
Hobbies: marching, formation training, formation singing
Motto: I stand for the image of a great nation
Debut
On May 6, 2015, Russia awarded a medal marking the 70th anniversary of the end of the Patriotic War to foreign militaries.
Li Bentao, Battalion Commander of the Honor Guard, said the Chinese honor guard attracted great attention in its displays abroad. The average height of the honor guards is 1.88 meters. The commanders of the army, navy and air force teams marched in the same row. The formation was eight by 12. The march also put their new uniforms on show.
To the delight of the Russians, the Chinese honor guard could sing too. The honor guard sung Katyusha in Russian when crossing Red Square. Zhang Hongjie, the national flag carrier, said he was very proud to sing a Russian song known to both nations.
At a rehearsal, all the participants, surprised to hear Katyusha sung by Chinese soldiers, applauded and sung along. Some young soldiers even wept, which made Chinese soldiers emotional.
Training
From the training ground to the parade ground, the honor guards wore through seven pairs of boots each on average. Every soldier had sore feet. Many had aching backs after practicing gun-holding and parade steps thousands of times.
On a hot day, the honor guards, in their uniforms, marched for three hours. Each guard walked more than 10,000 kilometers on parade.
History
The Communist Party of China decided to form an honor guard on March 4, 1946, to welcome U.S. General George C. Marshall. Five-hundred handpicked soldiers formed the first honor guard of the People’s Liberation Army.
Chairman Mao Zedong made a company of the central guards regiment to the company of honor guards to perform in the presentation of credentials. The honor guards first appeared on October 16, 1949, when the Soviet ambassador presented his credentials to Mao.
In March 1952, Zhou Enlai decided to officially form the Honor Guard. The honor guards had to be politically reliable, healthy, handsome and of good figure.
The Honor Guard was officially formed on June 29, 1953.
Mission
The soldiers must pass an evaluation for certain tasks. Not all have the same opportunities. The troops are evaluated in routine training to decide who will be assigned to a task.
