Sports City aims to score economic goals in Chengdu

The Wuhou International Sports City in Chengdu holds a promotional event on Oct 16. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The Wuhou International Sports City in Chengdu is set to start operations next year and inject impetus into the city's industrial development and economic growth, a senior executive from Chengdu Wuhou State-owned Capital Investment and Operation Group said at a promotional event held on Oct 16.

Covering an area of 31.93 hectares, the sports city comprises office buildings and commercial complexes totaling about 280,000 square meters; the Sichuan Gymnasium; the Sichuan Natatorium; a stadium for table tennis, badminton and tennis; outdoor public sports spaces and a community complex of around 18,000 sq m, said Ma Hongpu, deputy general manger of the company.

The office buildings are designed to attract leading sports enterprises as well as upstream and downstream institutions, while commercial complexes seek to connect sports experiences with consumption, building an industrial ecosystem led by sports and developing a center for the sports commercial economy, Ma said.

He added that they hoped to build this sports city into a distinctive place where visitors can gain in-depth experiences of sports and consumption.

The Wuhou International Sports City Area Operation Alliance was also launched at the event. Its members include Sichuan Sports College; Sichuan Gymnasium; the Wuhou culture, sports and tourism bureau; Chengdu Wuhou State-owned Capital Investment and Operation Group; and the Sichuan Sports Talent and Industry Development Center.

The event brought together representatives from companies that intend to cooperate with the sports city, including Wilson Sporting Goods, Lenovo Group and Anta Sports Products. Of them, the tech giant Lenovo will set up its Southwest China headquarters in the sports city.

The sports city's planning perfectly matches the needs of tech enterprises, said Jiang Kun, who is in charge of the company's business in Southwest China.  

"We will leverage Lenovo's industrial resources to attract more technology enterprises, sports enterprises and partners to pay attention to the sports city and invest in Wuhou district," he said.

According to Jiang, the company's southwest headquarters will mainly focus on business such as financial settlement and supply chain management.

Many industry experts and corporate leaders shared their insights into the sports city's development during the event.

"Sports industry is not merely about hosting competitions. It covers a complete industry chain including the production, wholesale and export of sporting goods," said Yu Zaiqing, an honorary member of the International Olympic Committee and vice-president of the Chinese Olympic Committee.

"Chengdu has already laid a solid foundation in events and competitions. In the future, the sports city can introduce more global top sports brands so as to gather more industrial resources," he added.

Xia Qing, deputy general manager of Shanghai Juss Sports and Entertainment Group, said: "For the operation of sports zones, it is essential to connect sports stadiums, commercial buildings, brands, and the public's needs to build an ecosystem that enables these segments to benefit each other."

Liao Yuanpeng, vice-principal of Chengdu Sport University, suggested sports rehabilitation be regarded as a key part of the "Sports Plus" ecosystem to establish a complete industry chain, ranging from event support to public health services, and advance the integrated development of sports and healthcare.