Following this film and television drama, many films and TV dramas related to "Huo Yuanjia" have become the classic works of that era, and at the same time, they have also shaped the enduring image of national heroes for the world.
In these TV dramas, Huo Yuanjia's story is exactly the same. This frail and self-taught martial arts master became a national hero of that era.
The earliest record related to Huo Yuanjia originated from1Shenbao published on February 3rd, 909. In this newspaper, there is a news item entitled "China Hercules invited to Bi Li".
As the leading newspaper in China at that time, this report should not be false, so in history, the character Huo Yuanjia did exist. At the same time, according to the record of this newspaper, he will compete with American warriors.
This is completely consistent with the "fighting foreigners in the ring" in film and television dramas or folklore. The lost boxing he taught himself in film and television plays not only made these foreigners out of the water, but even made them better known as "the sick man of East Asia" to some extent.
However, in real history, Huo Yuanjia didn't beat foreigners in this competition, because the competition didn't start at all.