Getting active

Chinese are still flush with the glow of the Olympics and sport has never been more popular as a consequence. The Paralympic Games are continuing to drive this fixation on health and exercise.

China's Olympic success in sports where it previously lagged behind, like boxing and fencing, has aroused interest in them among ordinary people.

According to the Bee Fencing Club, a Beijing-based fencing society that was founded this year, the number of persons that called them to enquire about learning fencing saw a big increase after Chinese fencer Zhong Man won a gold on August 12 at the Beijing Olympic Games.

"More than 20 persons called us on August 13, just one day after Zhong's success," said a spokesperson of the club in an interview with CCTV.

A female member of the club said in the same interview that in the past she thought fencing was a noble sport out of reach for ordinary people, but after watching the fencing competition at the Olympics, she was deeply attracted by the courtesy and etiquette and the exquisite swordplay, which was the main reason for her to choose this sport as a hobby.

Like fencing, boxing has also been accepted by more and more Chinese after boxer Zou Shiming won a gold on August 24, the first boxing gold for China in the history of the Olympiad.

Cui Hong is a boxing lover in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province. After China's boxing success Cui enrolled his son in the local boxing club, hoping to cultivate mental and physical toughness in the boy.

These are a few examples of the new sports fever throughout China caused by the Olympic Games. In addition, entering 2008, sports commodity consumption in the country has steadily increased, including sports outfits, basketballs, footballs and ping-pong, tennis and badminton rackets.

Cheng Ye, a manager of men's wear department of Ganjiakou Plaza in west Beijing, said the sales volume of sports goods has increased greatly compared to the same period the previous year.

"Compared with other commodities, sports goods with Olympic logos sell better," he said.

According to the Marketing Department of the plaza, sales of sportswear, shoes and accessories from May to August this year increased by 22 percent over the same period last year.

Students are the main buyers of sporting goods. The summer vacation during the Olympic Games gave them enough time to choose their favorite items in shopping centers.

Apart from Beijing, the fever for sport also prevails in other parts of China. According to the Bureau of Statistics of Jiaxing, a city in east China's Zhejiang Province, the sales of sports and other recreation goods in the city had increased 34.5 percent by August year on year.

Various gyms and fitness clubs have also witnessed the nationwide sports trend. For many fitness clubs, the number of registered members is much higher than in previous years. As for public gyms, a ping-pong table or badminton court needs booking several days ahead.

Li Fei, 34, a technology manager at a foreign telecommunications company in Beijing, is one of those young work addicts who recently joined the sports and exercise army in China.

He said that before the Olympic Games he bought a treadmill and after the Olympics he bought a yearlong family card from a fitness center in the community where he lives.

"The Olympic Games has awakened a passion for sports in me. In the past I neglected exercise because of my busy work schedule, but from now on I hope to make sport my life," said Li.

According to koubei.com, the largest life information search engine in China, with the convening of the Beijing Olympic Games, the search frequency of words and phrases related to sports activities, such as fitness centers, gyms or swimming pools, increased dramatically by 50 percent, especially after the Olympic Games.

Apart from practical involvement in sports activities, more and more Chinese people are eager to learn about the competitive events at the Olympics, especially those they were unfamiliar with before.

"The Beijing Olympic Games have mobilized every sports cell of the Chinese and people's lives have become more dynamic and healthier. Ding Ruping, a sociologist at the Shanxi Academy of Social Sciences, told Xinhua News Agency, "Maybe this is one of the most precious legacies of the sports event to China."