Elite sport development in China – structure and strategy

Jinming Zheng*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

Elite sport has long been an, arguably, overriding priority of sport policy in Mainland China, and China’s notable elite sport achievements, most notably the Olympic gold medal success, have been one of the most noteworthy features of Chinese sport. Elite sport in China has been systematic rather than haphazard, following a centralised government-led system, namely the oft-quoted Juguo Tizhi (whole country support for elite sport system). Various policy documents and strategies have underpinned and propelled China’s rise as a superpower on the international elite sport stage. This chapter provides in-depth analysis of the underlying policy ‘secrets’ such as the Olympic Strategy, three versions of The Outline of the Strategic Olympic Glory Plan, and a series of specific policy documents published at various critical junctures particularly in the lead-up to the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympic Games, as well as China’s longstanding strategic planning, particularly the ‘Five-Word principle’ – ‘small, fast, women, water and agile’ sports, disciplines and events and Tian’s primarily physical-based/skill-based clustering theory. These have largely shaped China’s elite sport landscape and configuration and major sources of Olympic (gold) medals. However, China’s ability to sustain its advantage is confronting major challenges at the most recent Summer and Winter Olympic Games, which provide a note of pessimism, or at least caution on China’s (gold) medal performances at the forthcoming Olympics, most notably Tokyo 2020.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationSport Policy in China
EditorsJinming Zheng, Shushu Chen, Tien-Chin Tan, Barrie Houlihan
Place of PublicationOxon; New York
PublisherRoutledge
Chapter3
Pages46-78
Number of pages33
Edition1st
ISBN (Electronic)9781315168234
ISBN (Print)9781138051669, 9780367520151
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Aug 2018

Publication series

NameRoutledge Research in Sport Politics and Policy
PublisherRoutledge

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Social Sciences(all)

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