6Month10Day, reporters learned from the2015"Press Conference for the National Mountain Obstacle Challenge in Heizhugou, Ebian, Leshan, China" that6from June26to-28, multiple outdoor sports clubs from across the country will take part in a mountain obstacle challenge at the Heizhugou scenic area in Ebian County, Leshan — known as the "Bermuda Triangle of China." This event is also a major supporting activity of the 2nd Sichuan International Tourism Trade Expo.
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According to the organizing committee, the competition is jointly organized by the Chinese Mountaineering Association, the Sichuan Provincial Sports Federation, and the People's Government of Leshan City, and hosted by the Sichuan Mountaineering and Outdoor Sports Association, the Leshan Tourism and Sports Development Commission, and the People's Government of Ebian Yi Autonomous County. At that time,approximately46teams from across the country (including20professional teams,16open teams, and10experience teams) with around200athletes will compete; additionally, over50judges, technical officials from the Chinese Mountaineering Association and the Sichuan Mountaineering and Outdoor Sports Association, as well as several domestic and international media reporters, will attend. According to the schedule, athletes willtake on challenges such as lifting heavy objects, rope climbing, pipe survival, crawling, andUescape wall challenges during cross-country running.The top eight finishers in each individual event and the top three teams overall will be awarded prizes, with a total prize purse of RMB10ten thousand yuan (including RMB6ten thousand yuan for the professional group and RMB4ten thousand yuan for the open group). It is understood thatthis challenge was custom-designed by the Chinese Mountaineering Association based on the natural features and local characteristics of the Heizhugou scenic area.
The host site, Heizhugou Scenic Area,is located within Ebian Yi Autonomous County, Leshan City.It is the closest ancient glacial landform and virgin forest scenic and eco-tourism area to a railway in Sichuan, as well as the closest Yi cultural experience area to Chengdu, boasting unique geographical advantages.1996It was designated as a provincial-level scenic spot in1999, and as a national forest park in2011, and was rated as a nationalAAAAA national AAAA-level tourist attraction and a national nature reserve,2014It was rated as a National Water Conservancy Scenic Area and a Provincial Eco-tourism Demonstration Zone in [year], and is known as the "Bermuda Triangle of China" and the "World's Mystery Capital." The core area of Heizhugou Scenic Spot covers575square kilometers, with an elevation ranging between1580―4288meters. It consists of seven major scenic areas: the Gully Entrance, Sancha River, Ronghongde, Tekemashan Mountain, Woluowaqu, Luosuoyida, and Azalea Pond.;It boasts the magical scenery and natural landscape unique to latitude30degrees, featuring [number] world-class scenic spots and [number] national-level scenic spots; it is home to over [number] species of flora and fauna, including more than [number] rare and endangered protected species. It is hailed as the "Paradise of Giant Pandas, Kingdom of Dove Trees, and World of Azaleas," possessing unique climate, geographical landscapes, and superior environmental quality, making it of distinctive value for tourism development.6scenic spots at the national level20sites; home to flora and fauna5000species, including nationally rare and endangered protected species30species, earning it the reputation as the “Paradise of Giant Pandas, Kingdom of Dove Trees, and World of Azaleas.” It boasts unique climate, geographical landscapes, and superior environmental quality, offering distinctive value for tourism development.
In recent years, Leshan has been committed to developing and promoting the Heizhugou Scenic Spot. Ebian Yi Autonomous County has positioned Heizhugou as the "World Mystery Capital · China’s Natural Geomagnetic Health Resort," striving to build the "Emei Mountain – Leshan Giant Buddha – Heizhugou" golden tourism triangle of Leshan, forming a tourism pattern where "Ngawa Prefecture has Jiuzhaigou, and Yi Prefecture has Heizhugou." The organizers hope that through this competition, outstanding domestic outdoor athletes will come to experience the beautiful scenery of Heizhugou and feel its "mystery," further enhancing the visibility and influence of the Heizhugou Scenic Spot.
According to the organizers, this competition has invited well-known and influential public figures from across the country to participate. Badminton world champion Ye Zhaoying, former vice president of Vanke Group Mao Daqing, CCTV commentator Yu Jia, famous musician Xu Fei, YiYi China President Ding Zuyu, and actor Sha Baoliang will take part in the open group competition. Meanwhile, to expand the competition's influence, this event adopts a new media promotion approach, led by Sina.com, with participation from [number] media outlets including television, print, radio, and online platforms; it also invites self-media experts and teams to provide comprehensive coverage of the event. In addition, this competition places great emphasis on audience participation. Athletes will wear equipment connected to satellites during the race, allowing anyone interested in the competition to watch the live action in real-time via mobile internet, keep track of their favorite teams or stars, and show support or give likes through their phones.32media outlets participated; influencers and teams were also invited to provide comprehensive coverage of the event. Additionally, this edition of the competition places great emphasis on audience participation. Athletes wear satellite-connected equipment during the race, allowing anyone interested in the event to watch the live action online via mobile devices, keep track of their favorite teams or athletes, and show support or give likes through their phones.
According to a person in charge of the Leshan Municipal Commission of Culture and Tourism, the “2015China Leshan Ebian Heizhugou National Mountain Outdoor Obstacle Challenge” is just one of the three major events hosted by Leshan this year. This year, Leshan will also hold the “Tour of China International Road Cycling Race (Leshan Stage)” and the “2015National BridgeAClub League (Second Stop).” Leshan hopes to organically integrate the sports and leisure industry with the tourism and vacation industry by hosting major sporting events, further enhancing the image of Leshan as a tourist city, and laying a solid foundation for bidding for higher-level events and developing sports tourism in the future. Officials from Leshan City stated that both the tourism and sports industries are vibrant andhighly potential sunrise industries. The integrated development of tourism and sports is an effective way to strengthen the tertiary sector and boost socio-economic development, as well as an effective approach for Leshan to build an international tourism destination and promote the transformation and upgrading of tourism. Leshan hopes to use this event as an opportunity to further expand exchanges, enhance friendships, achieve integration of tourism and sports, and promote transformation and upgrading.
