Daoshu is a performance in wushu practice and shows with certain sets to use broadswords as weapons. It originates from the ancient military training. Early in the reigns of the emperors Yan and Huang, the broadswords made of bronze had been used in battles. Up to Han dynasty, dao had become' one of the most key weapons.

The broadswords are mainly used in the close bare-handed fight so the skills of the practitioners decide their death or survival.

There are more than one hundred kinds of daoshu such as taiji daoshu, six-harmony daoshu, meihua daoshu, zhuifeng daoshu and eighttrigram daoshu. They can further be divided in detail into the single-broad-sword daoshu, the double-broad-sword daoshu and the long-handle-broadsword daoshu.  The single-broadsword daoshu means the athlete has a broadsword in one hand and cut, thrust, and sweep etc. while the other hand stretches and withdraws with it. Meanwhile the body rolls and jumps together with the movements of broadsword. The double-broadsword daoshu means the athlete has broadswords in the two hands. The skills of it is similar to the single-sword daoshu but it values more on the harmony and cooperation of the postures and footwork. The long-handle broadsword is thick and heavy and it usually weighs tens of jin. The skills are cut, thrust upward and upward parry etc. and It is being played with the power of the waist. Daoshu is one of the most important games in wushu. Therefore it has been decided as an official competition in the national wushu contest since 1949. Up to 1991，it was decided as the official competition in the World Wushu Championship.