Twenty-eight qigong practitioners who will be representing Hong Kong at the National Games say they are on a mission to dispel a common belief that the sport is merely a pastime for the elderly.

They say the ancient Chinese exercise has plenty of health benefits, and should be practised by people of all ages.

Officially called Health Qigong, the sport is one of 23 Mass Participation Events at this year's Games jointed hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau.

Three days of competitions are set to start this Saturday in the Guangdong city of Qingyuan.

Twenty-four SAR representatives are split into four teams of six, while four others are reserve members.

One team from their late 30s to 60s will be performing the "Ba Duan Jin" routine, or "Eight Pieces of Brocade".

Team member Karina To told RTHK that the routine is a series of flowing movements performed alongside conscious deep breaths.

"You can think of it like very slow flowing exercise, a little bit like Tai Chi. It's designed to reduce stress, boost energy, and keep your body balanced," she said.

"We have to perform as one, as a team, and we have to move in the identical timing and angle."

She added that apart from plenty of practice, team members also need to know each other's personalities to achieve synchrony.

"You have to be really [technically] accurate. What that means is judges check that if you're performing according to the requirements of the form," she said.

"For example, they look at your arm position, your foot placement, or even sometimes your gaze direction plays an important role.

"Second thing is the overall performance...each routine has a unique style, like some of the routine is almost like a dance, so you have to be really elegant in your move, you have to show that you are enjoying it."

And finally, being a team competition, she acknowledged synchronisation is key.

To insisted that winning medals wasn't their primary objective. They want to show that qigong is for all ages, and brings health benefits by enhancing your "qi", or vital energy.

"I would really want people to notice about this sport and stop and think, wow, this is health qigong and this is interesting," she said.

Her wish is to see qigong incorporated into the school curriculum so students can let out some stress and improve their health.