Witness the fitness as nation shapes a healthier future

The success of the first National Sports Publicity Week (Aug 7-13) has encouraged millions of people across China to get off the sofa and get active.

As part of China's national fitness campaign, numerous online and offline grassroots activities were organized across the country.

On Aug 8's National Fitness Day alone, over 6.5 million people took part in more than 24,000 exercise activities, according to the General Administration of Sport of China.

Volunteers played a huge role in ensuring the success of the week, staging free training sessions and helping to organize activities that promote healthier living and scientific training methods.

In Zhejiang province, volunteers from over 50 grassroots organizations organized activities in sports such as wushu, cycling, swimming and running.

Similar activities were also held in Hubei province. Currently, Hubei has more than 160,000 grassroots volunteer sports instructors and coaches. Each year, they participate in over 200 grassroots activities, helping to attract over 1 million people to sports.

In Kunming, Yunnan province, hundreds of senior citizens took part in a jogging event at Tuodong Sports Center, where local resident Zhao Saizhu was proud to be among the top finishers.

"I'm over 70 years old, and this is actually the first time that I've visited the sports center, which is open to us for free. I really cherish this chance, and I especially want to thank those instructors and volunteers who care a lot about our senior citizens," said Zhao.

"I intend to keep running half an hour a day. It helps me to relax. These days, we have better and better support in regard to fitness and sports. So I have no reason to stop exercising."

Tuodong Sports Center was one of the many high-quality venues open to the public across the nation.

Shanghai, for instance, organized over 260 sports and fitness activities and more than 50 sports culture fairs during National Sports Publicity Week, with more than 800 venues offering free admission to local residents.

In the city's Putuo district, 12 sports venues, 10 fitness centers and 10 outdoor courts were open to citizens on National Fitness Day, while a total of 47 sports venues were free to enter in the city's northern Baoshan district.

In Jingan district, over 40 sports venues were open free of charge, with some even staging anti-doping lectures, while in Xuhui district, over 30 municipal-level clubs and sports organizations offered a series of sports experiences and training activities.

Among these venues, Shanghai Luwan Sports center often provides free courts and pitches for the public, not just during National Sports and Fitness Week.

Lin Zhirong, a local soccer enthusiast, is a frequent visitor to the pitches at the center.

"Playing on such a quality pitch for a morning would usually cost about 3,000 yuan ($400). That would be too expensive for those of us who have retired. But the pitches are often open to senior citizens free of charge," said Lin.

"We enjoy great support from the government. As for our team, our priorities on the pitch are to be happy and healthy. Winning is not our goal, staying fit and healthy is."

In addition, some professional teams opened their training sessions to the public. As part of that initiative, 45 families in Shanghai visited professional training bases in the city, covering sports such as athletics, soccer, basketball, badminton and table tennis.

Apart from being able to use state-of-the-art training facilities, locals were also given access to the athletes' canteens and medical centers.

Shanghai Second Sports School, which counts Chinese hurdles legend Liu Xiang and two-time Olympic track cycling champion Zhong Tianshi among its former pupils, welcomed 15 local families over the last week.

The families watched the training sessions of professional track and field athletes, with some kids discovering the benefits of the school's smart track.

"The track not only detects a runner's speed, it can also measure your step frequency and step length. It's a smart track with digital data. Modern sports development is not so much about working athletes harder, it's more about using technology and scientific training methods to enhance an athlete's performance and prolong their career," explained Li Guoxiong, the principal of the school.

A series of online activities were also organized to attract wider participation. Zhejiang province, for instance, staged an online sports and fitness meet, attracting over 4 million participants. The online challenges included rope skipping, running, a plank competition and even break dancing.

Several Chinese sports icons joined the fun, with table tennis legend Ma Long, shot put star Gong Lijiao and Olympic champion swimmer Zhang Yufei recording videos to encourage more people to embrace a healthier lifestyle.