The "Sports+" Mashan Model: Mashan Bravely Scales the Peaks of Poverty Alleviation

       2019China-ASEAN Mountain Outdoor Sports Tourism Conference Launch Ceremony and China Climbing Natural Rock Wall Series Competition (Mashan Station, Guangxi)5Month26On the day in Mashan, Nanning, Guangxi — a distinctive sports town for climbing — the "Sports, Cultural Tourism, Poverty Alleviation, and County Development" Mashan model set sail once again, now more mature and well-defined, steadily living up to the concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets.”+Cultural Tourism+Poverty Alleviation+County Development

Opening Ceremony Site

       This competition was jointly organized by the Chinese Mountaineering Association, the Department of Sports of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It was hosted by the Nanning Municipal Sports Bureau, the Nanning Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism, the CPC Mashan County Committee, the People's Government of Mashan County, and Beijing Guoao Zhongjian Sports Development Co., Ltd., with exclusive operation by China Climb Trading (Beijing) Co., Ltd.

Competition Site

       This marked2019the first leg of the China Climbing Natural Rock Wall Series Competition. Led by international route setter Xie Weicheng, the route-setting team further elevated the difficulty and design of the courses. The abundant rock wall resources allowed top climbers to fully experience the thrill of the challenge.Nearly 100 professional athletes and climbing enthusiasts from Poland, Hong Kong (China), Hunan, Sichuan, Guizhou, Shandong, Jiangxi, Henan, Hebei, Jilin, Chongqing, Fujian, Guangdong, and Guangxi delivered a spectacular display of vertical ballet.These top domestic climbers demonstrated extraordinary skill. Agile and nimble on the Mashan Sanjia Tun cliffs, they moved like vines intertwined with the natural rock faces. Their precise and impressive ascents drew waves of cheers and applause from the audience, fully showcasing the charm of vertical ballet..

Competition Site

       After two days of intense competition, Qu Changfeng andAleksandre Karolina Przybysz(Ola, Polish nationality)won the men’s and women’s adult division championships with times of3’34”10and3’40”53, respectively, claiming the first titles of the new season.2019New Season First Championship Titles

Adult Men’s Division Top Three Award Ceremony

Adult Women’s Division Top Three Award Ceremony

       Wei Junfei and Qin Yumei from Mashan County’s Gulinqi Town Junior High School secured the men’s and women’s youth division titles with times of1’54”40and2’24”97, respectively.AThe group champions, with athletes from the Gu Ling Town Junior High School in Mashan County—the host—sweeping the top three spots in both the male and female youthAgroups. The individual champions of the male and female youthBgroups were claimed by Huang Hanjun and Zhou Siyu with times of2’43”97and2’52”32respectively.

Award ceremony for the top three male athletes in the Youth A Group

Award ceremony for the top three female athletes in the Youth A Group

 

Award ceremony for the top three male athletes in the Youth B Group

Award ceremony for the top three female athletes in the Youth B Group

       Wang Yongfeng, Deputy Director of the Mountaineering Sports Management Center of the General Administration of Sport of China and Vice President of the Chinese Mountaineering Association,Zhang Ziying, County Chief of Mashan County People’s Government in Nanning City, Luo Shen, Director of the Rock Climbing Competition Preparation Office of the Chinese Mountaineering Association,Wei Jia, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Mashan County Committee and Chairman of the County CPPCC, Huang Zijiang, Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Mashan County Committee, Head of the Propaganda Department and Deputy County Chief, and Zhang Youji, Vice Chairman of the County CPPCC, presented awards to the winning athletes.

        This event was not only a competition arena for top climbers but also a grand party for outdoor sports enthusiasts. Over the two days of activities and competitions, tens of thousands of outdoor enthusiasts flocked to Mashan. They enjoyed breathtaking natural rock wall climbing competitions, witnessed the most distinctive performances of Zhuang ethnic folk culture, and these outdoor sports fans from across the country experienced an outdoor sports feast in Mashan, the characteristic rock climbing sports town. Activities such as combat archery, bubble football, orienteering on rock faces, and embroidered ball toss on back baskets were all thrilling. The blend of ethnic culture and natural scenery, sports competition and outdoor tourism, created a joyful atmosphere at the event.

Mashan Drum Performance

        What once hindered Mashan’s economic development has now become a prized spot for outdoor climbing enthusiasts. The steep cliffs of Mashan have turned into excellent venues for China’s Natural Rock Wall Series Rock Climbing Competitions and a hotspot for mountain outdoor activities. During the conference, investment promotion events were also held to actively attract enterprises to invest in Mashan. By boosting industries to enrich the people, efforts were made to help alleviate poverty in Mashan, promote county development, and achieve rural revitalization. Mashan’s “sports + culture-tourism + poverty alleviation + county development” model has gained new momentum. This model has become a powerful tool in Mashan’s battle against poverty.

        From pioneering the “sports+” model in Mashan in 2016, to establishing the Mashan Rock Climbing Characteristic Sports Town in 2017, and further deepening the development of the climbing town and the “sports+” model, Mashan County has forged its own unique path in poverty alleviation. With the launch of various sporting events and the construction of the characteristic rock climbing sports town, Mashan County has closely aligned with the goals of poverty alleviation and county development, fully leveraging the positive impact of industrial driving forces and development platforms. In 2017, the county saw an 18.5% increase in tourist arrivals and a remarkable 30.59% rise in total tourism revenue. The “sports+” model contributed to a 17% poverty alleviation rate among the county’s impoverished population. In 2018, Mashan welcomed 5.02 million tourists, with total tourism consumption rising 52.7% year-on-year. The tourism circle around Nongla, centered on the rock climbing sports town, accounted for about 80% of the county’s total visitors. The four poverty-stricken villages along the routes where events were held—Yangshan, Anshan, Qiaolao, and Limin—as well as the areas surrounding the core zone of the rock climbing sports town in Sanjia Tun, all achieved whole-village poverty eradication. The poverty incidence rate in Mashan dropped from 11.6% in 2017 to 5.91% this year.

        In Mashan, Sanjia Tun in Yangshan Village, Gu Ling Town, once a poor mountain village, is undergoing a qualitative transformation. In August 2017, this 3.6-square-kilometer area centered on Sanjia Tun was approved as China’s first rock climbing characteristic sports town. It includes a climbing sports zone, a sports leisure zone, a sports wellness zone, a dynamic farming zone, one sports loop, and multiple mountain sports clusters, forming a “four zones, one loop, multiple points” layout. The town has developed 22 rock walls with 552 climbing routes, built 19 climbing schools, 6 hiking trails, 9 climbing platforms, 92 homestays, as well as supporting facilities like camping lawns, tourist toilets, and RV campsites. It now meets the facility requirements for climbing competitions, instructional training, and experience activities, and was rated as a “Guangxi Sports Industry Demonstration Base” and “Guangxi Five-Star Mountain Outdoor Sports Camp” in 2018. Meanwhile, over the past two years, various climbing and outdoor events have been hosted here, making Mashan Gu Ling a “holy land” in the eyes of China’s outdoor sports enthusiasts, especially climbers.

        Along with the construction of the rock climbing characteristic sports town, Mashan’s tourism industry has seen a significant upsurge. The county has carried out comprehensive renovations to preserve the Zhuang ethnic style, refreshing the urban and rural landscape—villages are brighter, rivers cleaner, fields more beautiful, and roads smoother. Attractions such as Jinlun Cave, Nongla, Lingyang Temple, Xiaodubai, and the Sanjia Rural Tourism Area have become new destinations for tourists and outdoor sports enthusiasts.

        Mashan County actively integrates the “dynamics” of sporting events with the “essence” of cultural tourism and the “serenity” of leisure agriculture. This has fostered a well-rounded development where agriculture, culture, sports, and tourism thrive together, and the integration of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries flourishes. Mashan’s “sports + culture-tourism + poverty alleviation + county development” model is becoming a golden brand, attracting captivated visitors and propelling the county’s vibrant progress in all sectors.

Photo credits: Xinhua News Agency, Event Organizing Committee.

Special thanks: Li? / Lu Lihong / Wei Huibao / Huang Yu / Liu Honghai / Qin Boyi / Zhao Zhian