Guangzhou, known traditionally as a sports city, has always been dedicated to promoting the development of public sports infrastructures. The Guangzhou Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau aims at achieving ‘integrated throughout, friendly for all ages, universally applicable, and fully open,’ organizing and scientifically planning the “Public Sports Facilities Plan for Thousands of Locations in Guangzhou in Preparation for the 2025 Asian Games” (hereafter referred to as the “Plan”). It proactively responds to the eager expectations of city residents, accelerates the construction of sports facilities “at citizens’ doorsteps” to vigorously pursue ‘economic growth, safety, hosting the Asian Games, and quality improvement.’
The “Plan” is based on the city’s natural resources, combining greenways, jade paths, fitness trails, and mountain roads, to explore and utilize park green spaces, boundary lands, open spaces of community buildings, and lands under village forests to strategically select new sports facility locations, building a “ten-minute fitness circle” easily accessible to the city’s residents.
As of now, the city has implemented a total of 66 sports facility projects, with 48 completed and 18 under construction. The sports structures are diverse, including large sports parks and community sports grounds. Additionally, as a pilot city for China’s soccer reform, Guangzhou proactively addresses the requirements for high-quality soccer development, fully utilizing idle lands and other space resources to build and renovate community soccer fields, promoting soccer activities and culture.
Community sports parks tightly cover fitness facilities within reach. Located on the east side of Guangzhou Ring Road, the Yellow Buqiao All-age Smart Sports Park utilizes protective green space, focusing on an all-age, intelligent design to create a comprehensive ecological sports park featuring football fields, basketball courts, table tennis tables, tennis courts, climbing frames, gymnastics rings, children’s play equipment, smart fitness equipment, jogging tracks, and walking paths. It has been fundamentally completed, filling long-standing gaps in recreational spaces for nearby residents.
Huangpu Vaka Gang Sports Park Pocket, originally an abandoned green land, has been transformed into a great spot for nearby residents’ fitness and recreation. It is equipped with football and basketball fields and includes children’s activity and leisure facilities. Furthermore, the Northern Pocket Park at Huangpu Sports Center fully utilizes existing greens, re-planning space functionalities, adding soccer fields and children’s play equipment to create a vibrant multi-type sports and recreational park.
Incorporated sports facilities add dynamism to the landscape. Zengcheng District utilizes the space of cover over the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway interchange to create Haibei Park, leading with ecology to build a multifaceted suspended park. The first phase is completed and open, providing about 35 recreational and fitness installations, covering soccer fields, basketball courts, making a vibrant fitness circle “at citizens’ doorsteps.” Nearby the Baiyun Yunyun Innovation Center, the newly constructed Haizi Central Park includes integrated sports facilities like soccer fields and active sports such as skateboarding and surfing, further enriching and expanding community fitness capacity, injecting new vitality into urban public spaces.
Upgrading existing facilities refreshes sports experience. Situated amidst greens in Panyu District, New Village Tailor Public Sports Fields integrate street culture and vibrancy, transforming old sports fields into high-standard, aesthetically pleasing soccer and basketball fields, offering a safer, more comfortable sports environment for locals. Similarly, the Baiyun Jinsha Island Riverside Park upgrades existing sports fields, adding pools to innovate with the “sports and culture center +” concept, setting a comprehensive sports culture center benchmark.
The construction and implementation of public sports facilities not only upgrades Guangzhou’s sports infrastructure but also provides adequate support locations for Asian Games trainings and events, effectively fulfilling training and warm-up needs. Guangzhou Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau highlights, as a next step, there will be further innovative and practical measures to speed up public sports facility developments, delivering more high-quality fitness venues for residents, continuously fulfilling peoples’ aspirations for a better and healthy life.
Written by/Dou Ting, Xinhua City Daily Correspondent: Su Junjie
48 Facilities Built! Guangzhou Plans for Thousands of Public Sports Facilities for the Asian Games
