The trophy for the Jinhua Division of the Zhejiang Provincial City Basketball League. [Photo/WeChat account: jhfabu]

An exquisite 60-centimeter championship trophy stole the spotlight during the Jinhua Division finals of the Zhejiang Provincial City Basketball League on July 20.

Designed by renowned craftsmen Huang Xiaoming and Cheng Yuquan, the trophy blends traditional craftsmanship with modern spirit through the art of copper carving.

Cheng, born in Yongkang county-level city of Jinhua and now 66, inherited Shendiao Copper Craft — a family legacy spanning two centuries — as its sixth-generation heir.

At the age of 16, Cheng started his journey with copper carving. Amid the industrial revolution for handmade arts, he endured challenges to preserve manual techniques against the mechanization trend.

In 1983, Cheng and his father began their entrepreneurship with a family handicraft workshop, which later evolved into the Zhejiang Shendiao Bronze Art Co.

Despite humble beginnings without advanced tools, relentless pursuit refined Cheng's skills. After mastering over 20 traditional techniques, he innovated new crafts and pioneered unique styles like bronze landscape painting.

Cheng works on a copper-carving piece. [Photo/Tide News]

The trophy for the Zhejiang Provincial City Basketball League is not the first time that copper art has shone in sports events.

At last year's 26th China University Basketball Association League finals, Cheng engraved the champion's name "Tsinghua University" onto the trophy within minutes, showing the charm of the traditional craft to spectators onsite and online.

Cheng has also committed himself to promoting the art to the public. He has trained more than 3,000 apprentices nationwide and helped create tens of thousands of jobs.

"The future relies on not just preserving but also spreading culture," Cheng said. He expects that through the trophy, more youngsters can get to know and fall in love with copper carving, injecting new vitality into the century-old art.