Best-ever results in Olympics to further ignite craze, open up huge market for tennis industries
As Chinese athletes have made history in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with a tennis singles gold medal and a mixed doubles silver - the best results in relevant events - the country is witnessing a "tennis economy" that is gaining momentum in the summer season.
Sales of tennis training courses more than doubled in July, and most hot time slots for tennis courts in first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai were fully booked in recent days, the Global Times learned. Observers said that these trends underscored the increasing popularity of tennis among Chinese sports enthusiasts.
The historic achievements of Chinese tennis players at the Paris Olympic Games are expected to further ignite the craze, fueling the country's sports consumption, while opening up a prodigious market for sports training and tennis equipment sales, industry insiders said.
Tennis ace Zheng Qinwen defeated Donna Vekic of Croatia 6-2, 6-3 for the women's singles gold on Saturday. It was China's first tennis singles gold medal in Olympic history.
On Friday, Zhang Zhizhen and Wang Xinyu claimed the silver medal in the mixed doubles, also the country's best result in the history of the Olympic Games.
A market operation executive surnamed Zhang at the Beijing-based Bai Dong Tennis Academy told the Global Times on Sunday that driven by this year's Olympic fever, the company's tennis academy enrollments are on the rise, with heightened interest from young players during the summer holidays.
"The Chinese tennis team's impressive performance at the Olympics generated widespread attention, and star athletes, such as Zheng Qinwen, are setting inspiring examples for tennis enthusiasts, particularly among young people, and are poised to boost the sport's popularity," Zhang noted.
Aaron Cao, CEO of the Beijing International Tennis Academy, told the Global Times on Sunday that China's historic tennis breakthrough will drive a rise in court bookings and training lesson registrations, and it may also encourage previously hesitant parents to consider enrolling their children in tennis programs.
Consultations for tennis training courses are already on the uptick in recent days, the Global Times learned from several Beijing-based tennis training institutions. Some also posted photos of Zheng's victory moment either in their commercials or social media accounts to garner more public attention.
The overwhelming demand for tennis court reservations is further evidence of Chinese sports fans' growing appetite for tennis.
The Global Times learned from the Beijing Tennis Administration Center that tennis courts managed by the center are fully booked from Sunday to Thursday. According to data from e-commerce platform Meituan, tennis experience classes and quarterly tennis training packages are among its top sellers, with group-buying orders related to tennis jumping by 172 percent year-on-year since.
Data from another platform, vip.com, showed that sales of tennis skirts are up 91 percent year-on-year. Searches for tennis skirts at Tmall also soared 256 percent during this year's June 18 shopping carnival.
Fu Zijun, a 25-year-old Shanghai tennis lover, has placed orders online to buy more professional tennis gear, as she was thrilled and deeply inspired by Zheng's perseverance and conviction. She is also preparing to sign up for a formal adult training course.
"With improved living standards and better service quality, tennis is becoming more accessible and appealing in China, shedding its previous image as an elite sport," Fu said.
According to a report published by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), China ranked second globally in tennis participation after the US with 19.92 million participants in 2021, accounting for 22.9 percent of the global tennis population.
The Chinese team's success in the Paris Olympics is set to invigorate the country's tennis economy, accelerating growth in the mass fitness market and delivering significant benefits to the tennis training, management and equipment sectors, Zhang Qing, founder of Beijing-based Key-Solution Sports Consulting Co, told the Global Times on Sunday. He also highlighted the considerable potential for the growth in the tennis sector, taking account of China's 1.4 billion population.
"It is expected to have a cross-industry impact with long-term and far-reaching effects, stimulating enthusiasm among consumers and creating numerous opportunities for relevant industry growth," Zhang said.
"Rising interest in the sport is evident as tennis events become buzzwords online, signaling the public's deeper engagement in playing tennis. It also reflects an upgrade in sports demand in China and a diversification in sports consumption," Zhang added.
Industry insiders anticipate that the number of tennis training institutions and tennis courts will expand amid the booming "tennis economy," and that in turn will further propel the development of Chinese tennis players.
China has the second-highest number of tennis courts in the world, totaling 49,767 in 2021, the ITF report showed.