..
National tennis fever: Chinese stellar players and enthusiasts drive sport to new heights
en.hangzhou.com.cn 2024-10-22 14:51 Source: Global Times
Grass-roots participation
Looking back over the past two decades, each individual breakthrough by tennis players has expanded the horizons of the sport in China.
In just 20 years, tennis has grown from a niche sport with limited public awareness and low competitive levels to one of China's most popular and promising disciplines.
According to the International Tennis Federation (ITF), in 2021, there were 87.18 million people participating in tennis globally, with China ranking second with 19.92 million participants, accounting for 22.9 percent of the global tennis-playing population.
At the grass-roots level, the development of tennis talent is evolving rapidly. A youth tennis tour starring China's two-time Grand Slam doubles champion Zheng Jie has also become a platform for Chinese youth players to grow.
Traditional talent development models focused on elite athletes often cause many promising young players to quit the sport if they don't reach the top, analysts say, as they call for shifting focus from fostering a passion for tennis to providing life-long learning opportunities.
Despite impressive attendance at events, tennis remains a relatively high-cost sport to pick up in China. A typical tennis family's annual expenses can easily reach hundreds of thousands of yuan, the Global Times has learned.
An increasing number of Chinese families are choosing to support their children's tennis journeys, driven by both economic stability and higher educational and personal development goals for their kids, prominent Beijing-based tennis promoter Qiu Youyi told the Global Times.
"We are seeing more and more young people picking up the racket in China, but the question is, how do we keep them engaged in the sport for the long term and ensure they benefit and grow from participating?" Qiu said.
"If tennis is seen solely as a path to elite status, it will be difficult to sustain this interest."
But Chen is optimistic about the popularity of tennis in China.
"Current momentum indicates there will be more title wins from Chinese tennis players, which will be the catalyst for growing the sport's popularity," Chen told the Global Times.
"As long as popularity grows, there will be more kids participating in the sport, and thus we might be able to see the rise of future heroes."
Author: Lu Wenao and Wu Jie Editor: Ye Lijiao
Back
