Showing real bottle: The extreme training endured by China's first female bodyguards



With her face grimacing in unbearable discomfort, this is the moment a trainee bodyguard has a bottle smashed over her head.

Amazingly, the recruit has to stand there and take it if she wants to qualify as one of China's first female bodyguards.

The training session, which took place in Beijing, involved 20 women, most of whom are university graduates.



Extreme methods: An instructor smashes a bottle over a female recruit's head during a training session for China's first female bodyguards in Beijing

Another recruit receives the same treatment - and has to stand still and take it in order to complete the training

Gun crazy: An instructor shows the female recruits how to disarm an armed attacker

Hold up: The trainees use rubber guns as they learn how to overcome armed assailants



Beating: An instructor from Tianjiao Special Guard Consultant Ltd smashes a piece of wood over a recruit's leg With the booming economy in China and increasing wealth sparked by high demand for Chinese goods and materials, demand for bodyguard services had risen dramatically on the Chinese mainland. Graduates of bodyguard courses can look forward to a well-paid career if they are recruited by wealthy businessmen. That is especially the case for women, who are in high demand because they are less visible than their male counterparts and because they can assume roles such as secretary or nanny. Female bodyguards are often paid far better than male counterparts - up to $100 a day - because they can adopt these different roles. The average annual wage in China is just $1,500. The boom in China has also seen a rise in the growth of wealthy women, who prefer female bodyguards because their presence does not raise questions of potential relationships. How it's done: An instructor demonstrates how to overpower an attacker Hand-to-hand combat: Two instructors teach the recruits fighting techniques Under control: On the ground with her arms held behind her back, this would-be attacker is going nowhere Elite: The lethal lady recruits stand in formation as they await further instruction



