Happy moment: A file picture showing Zheng after she won the tennis Olympic crown in Paris, France. The search volume for sports activities has increased significantly, demonstrating the Olympics’ stimulating effect on the consumption market in China. —AP
BEIJING: During this scorching summer, Chinese audiences buoyed by the Olympic Games Paris 2024 athletes from China and around the world, have been increasingly interested in splashing cash on sporting activities and filling their shopping carts with celebrity-endorsed designer items.
The Paris Olympic Games have boosted the popularity of a variety of sports activities including tennis in China.
Since the Chinese tennis players advanced to the semi-finals, the number of court bookings has increased by up to half, a person in charge of the chain tennis training centre Rock Tennis said.
“After Zheng Qinwen won the championship, it triggered a peak in bookings and inquiries,” the person said, adding that the court is planning to expand the number of its chain stores in Beijing in the future.
Data from the eCommerce platform Meituan shows that in July, the search volume for sports activities increased by around 180% from June, further demonstrating the Olympics’ stimulating effect on the consumption market in sports in China.
In July, the order volume for badminton grew by 90% from a year earlier, and the group purchase order volume related to tennis sports surged by 172%, according to the platform.
At the same time, the events introduced for the first time at this year’s Paris Olympics have also attracted attention.
According to the Meituan data, emerging events such as breakdancing have gained popularity among young consumers since their Olympic debuts.
The search volume for breakdance surged by around 107.8% compared with the same period last year, and the number of related notes and guides grew by 150%.
Since July, the search volume for indoor climbing gyms has also increased by 62 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.Li Yanbei, the person in charge of Morepark skateboard park, said the Paris Olympics have brought a new wave of popularity to skateboarding. “We hope to continuously increase the popularity of skateboarding by organising events and providing explanations, allowing more people to understand and learn about this sport,” she said.
“With the appearance of Chinese athletes on the Olympic stage and other major events, we are optimistic about the future of skateboarding,” she added.
The enthusiasm generated by the Paris Olympics has not only driven the popularity of sports events but also stimulated the heat of many other consumer markets, such as cinema and apparel markets.
Watching games in theatres with large screens has become a new trend among Chinese audiences this summer.
The total box office for the live broadcast of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in cinemas has reached about 2.44 million yuan, according to the data from the Lighthouse Professional Edition, a box office data provider owned by Alibaba.
Data from Douyin eCommerce platform shows that during the Olympic period from July 26 to Aug 11, the turnover of “essential” items used when watching the games, including alcoholic beverages, food and digital home appliances, has more than doubled from a year earlier.
When Chinese audiences are worshipping the Olympic athletes, especially those from their hometown for their splendid performances in the different competitive fields, they have also turned to shopping sites and hunted for celebrity-endorsed apparel to show support for the athletes. — Xinhua
