TNS Sport China survey reveals popularity of sport on the increase in China as¡®Olympics fever' builds
 24th July 2008, Beijing ¨C According to the latest wave of the ¡®TNS Sport China Barometer' conducted by CSM Media Research/TNS Sport, 85% of urban Chinese are now practising at least one physical activity or sport on a regular basis. This is a percentage that has risen continually since TNS Sport started to measure the attitude and relationship of Chinese to sports back in 2003.
Factors contributing to the steady increase include much higher standards of living among the urban Chinese population, more facilities being built in the major cities and an increasing number of international sports events taking place in China such as the F1 Shanghai Grand Prix, China Tours of major European football clubs¡and of course the upcoming 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
In the latest poll conducted in May 2008 by TNS Sport China, the top five sports most practised by Chinese people include walking (51.6%), jogging (32%), badminton (26.4%), cycling (18.8%) and swimming (14.7%) with the least practised being tennis (0.6%) and golf (0.5%). Interestingly, only a mere 5.9% of urban Chinese mentioned having practised football recently, a result that is possibly due to the lack of football pitches within urban China (expensive land contributes to the lack of facilities while harsh weather conditions limit outdoor activities in winter and summertime). However, the popularity of football has increased year on year over the last five years from a base of virtually nobody playing this sport.
At 11.9%, basketball ranks in 7th position just behind China's national sport and favourite pastime: table tennis. But it is basketball that can boast to be the sport most favoured by youths aged between 15 and 24 years old, with nearly 1 in 3 practising basketball on China's many city-centre playgrounds. With a national hero like Yao Ming, basketball's popularity is likely to continue and motivate people to play in their spare time.
Interest in both the Olympics and in sports in general has been on the rise over the last year. For sports in general, the average based on a 10-point scale has risen from just over 6 to 6.5. For the Olympics, the average moved from 6.4 to 6.8. Interest in the Olympics is now unprecedented. On top of Olympic ¡®interest', CMS Media Research has also measured ¡®overall Olympic satisfaction'. On average, consumers in China score their satisfaction at 7.6 out of 10, the highest it has been since measurement started.
According to Pierre Justo, Managing Director of TNS Sport China, one of the key reasons for increasing participation in sport in China is people's desire to show off.
¡°In China, sport is seen as an upmarket activity which allows people to show off their economic and financial status. Sport is becoming increasingly important to the Chinese. As this way of thinking is not expected to change any time soon, we can expect to see an increase in the practice of less popular sports like tennis, or even golf, with new facilities being built every day. Extreme sports activities could also come into vogue.¡±
As for the Olympics, when Chinese were asked which sport they would be most interested in during the Beijing Games, table tennis came top with 52.9% saying they were most interested in this sport ahead of basketball (43.9%) and track and field (40.9%).
Pierre Justo added: ¡°It is in these three sports ¨C table tennis, basketball, track and field ¨C that there is a high expectation that China will win Olympic gold medals. China is hoping to show the world that it is a true sporting powerhouse.¡±
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