Chengdu World Games trending sports captivate Chinese youth

by Xinhua writers Wu Qiong and Shi Yifei

CHENGDU, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- As the 2025 World Games unfold in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, sports like climbing, squash and roller skating are capturing the imagination of China's younger generation. Fueled by Olympic appeal, social media buzz and urban lifestyle trends, these sports, once niche activities in China, are now driving a fitness revolution.

RISING ROCK CLIMBING POPULARITY

Inside Chengdu's Climbing Panda gym, 26-year-old instructor Fu Yan guided her young student with an encouraging shout: "Nice, nice! Now grip tight with hands and leap to the next spot!" The heat outside is intense, but 6-year-old Doudou, like many young enthusiasts, insists on her weekly lesson. "Kids just enjoy it," Fu told Xinhua with a smile.

Fu's journey in climbing began eight years ago at Chengdu Sport University. Over the years, she's watched the sport transform from a fringe activity to a mainstream phenomenon. "Middle and high schoolers are too busy with school, and so younger kids are more likely to join extracurricular activities like climbing," she explained.

Her students' parents, she observed, are typically well-educated and open-minded, valuing how climbing builds both physical strength and mental resilience in their children. "For the kids themselves, climbing is like leveling up in a video game -- colorful holds and quick progress hook beginners easily. But only those who push through the pain and frustration truly stick with it. That's when they discover their real strength," Fu revealed.

She knows this from personal experience. In 2019, she faced a slump and nearly quit, but support from her boyfriend, also a climbing instructor, helped her persist, eventually becoming an instructor herself. "Once you become a climbing instructor, you also develop this strong sense of commitment and responsibility. So I keep climbing until this day," she reflected.

Fu's observations align with broader trends. Since rock climbing became an Olympic sport in 2020, cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu have seen a boom in climbing gyms, with Meituan data showing that by the end of July 2025, search volume for rock climbing in Chengdu alone had surged 90 percent year on year. Demand spans ages -- children's climbing programs grew 82 percent, while adult participation rose by 76 percent. Nationwide, searches for rock climbing experience courses have skyrocketed nearly 20 fold.

The 2024 Paris Olympics further fueled interest, especially after Chinese athletes Deng Lijuan and Wu Peng won silver medals in speed climbing -- now a standalone Olympic event. Climbing emerged as the fastest-growing among the Games' new sports, with online discussions surging 130 percent, according to a 2024 China climbing industry development report.

This enthusiasm is reflected in expanding infrastructure. As of January 2025, China had boasted 811 climbing facilities, including natural rock climbing sites, marking a 27.5 percent year-on-year increase, the report revealed. Many gyms now occupy prime spots in shopping malls, while "community walls" near schools and residential areas cater to families.

Social media has amplified this trend -- platforms like Rednote, also known as Xiaohongshu, and Douyin teem with climbers sharing their experiences, turning "after-work climbing" into a viral urban pastime. Notably, nearly 90 percent of adult climbers have a bachelor's degree or higher, with a quarter earning over 200,000 yuan (about 28,018 U.S. dollars) annually, the report showed.

SQUASH TEEN OLYMPIC QUEST

At the ongoing Chengdu World Games, 18-year-old squash player Liu Ziyi has front-row seats to her sport's explosive growth. Almost a decade of training has taken her from the days when squash was so niche "hardly anyone knew the rules" to today with new courts popping up and young players flooding the scene. "It's incredible to watch," she told Xinhua after a recent match.

Liu made the host nation's first squash victory at the multi-sport event on Sunday, and she has her eye on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where squash will make its Olympic debut. Balancing national team training and competitions with studies at an international school, she combines online classes and self-paced study plans to accommodate her quest for squash glory. For young players, she has a simple message: "Keep pushing and they're gonna go really far in the future and be stars in our country."

Present in the stands at a squash match in Chengdu, a 15-year-old high schooler surnamed Luo embodies the fresh wave of interest in this sport. Attending her first squash event, she was so captivated that she posted about it immediately on social media. "Right away, friends messaged back: 'Let's book a court this afternoon after the match,'" she laughed. "What's amazing is how different it is from other sports," she said, noting the rules, the speed and the way in which the ball ricochets off the walls. It feels like nothing else, she explained.

Data underscores this surge. According to Meituan data, national searches for squash had climbed 87 percent year on year by the end of July this year, while the number of searches for squash courts in China saw a surge of 175 percent -- driven by hotspots like Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and east China's Hangzhou.

For Liu, these numbers aren't just statistics. They're a sign that when she hopes to step onto that Olympic court in 2028, she'll be representing her country in a sport that is no longer niche, but thriving -- fueled by Chinese teens like her, and newcomers like Luo, who've fallen under squash's spell.

RESURGENCE OF ROLLER SKATING

Roller skating completes our picture. Zhang Hang, an adult Chengdu veteran who performed at the opening ceremony of 2025 Chengdu World Games, told Xinhua that he has refereed national meets and now is documenting events through live streams. COVID once prevented many from using their wheels, but now the city's 100-kilometer greenways, and the newly established high-standard roller skating court for the Games, are packed with skaters of every age, he said.

Children stream to after-school programs and teens chase speed in sleek racing gear, while grey-haired dancers use their roller skates in gliding to music in public squares. "We roll together after work and during weekends," he laughed. "It's not just a sport -- it's a lifelong community," Zhang concluded. ■