Extreme sports — encompassing inline skating, skateboarding, BMX biking, speed climbing, and freestyle motocross high-jump competitions — have long been regarded as emerging niche activities. When the four-day 2013 World Extreme Sports Games concluded at Jiangwan Stadium in Shanghai’s Yangpu District, the excitement wasn’t just about the historic silver medal won by the Chinese team, but also the 192 participants from around the world and the over 69,800 attendees.
Seven Years Building an “Extreme Olympics”
Seven years ago, Yangpu District extended an invitation to host what was then the Asian Extreme Sports Championship. Over the past seven years, the event has gradually evolved into what is now hailed as the “Extreme Olympics” — the World Extreme Sports Games — with prize money rising to $260,000, making it the second-largest extreme sports competition in the world.
Throughout this process, this sport, known abroad as the “sport of the future,” has gradually gained acceptance among the Chinese public. “In the beginning, very few people came, and we had to organize audiences. Now, people pay for tickets to watch, and many parents are even willing to support their children getting involved in extreme sports,” said Liu Fumin. This event has helped extreme sports take root and grow in China, and Yangpu has become a hub for the sport, further expanding its development nationwide.
In 2006, the 12,000-square-meter “Shanghai SMP Extreme Sports Park” was completed in Xinjiangwan City and was certified by the Shanghai Great World Guinness Headquarters as the “World’s Largest Extreme Sports Park.” Over the years, the Shanghai SMP Extreme Sports Park has become a gathering place for extreme sports enthusiasts across Shanghai and even China. Currently, besides Shanghai’s Yangpu District, other cities such as Beijing, Huzhou, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen also host national-level extreme sports competitions, and the number of amateur extreme sports enthusiasts has exceeded 200,000.
A Market of 69,800 Attendees
Alongside China’s growing community of extreme sports enthusiasts, the country’s athletes have also developed. Four Chinese skateboarders and inline skaters received wild cards to compete in this top-tier event, gaining valuable experience. In the finals of the men’s speed climbing event, five Chinese athletes made it to the final round. Eventually, Zhong Qixin, captain of China’s national climbing team, won the silver medal — the only award earned by Chinese athletes across the 11 events and a historic breakthrough for China in this “Extreme Olympics.”
This year’s event attracted over 69,800 attendees. According to previous broadcast data from ESPN, last year’s TV and online viewership surpassed 320 million.
“Extreme sports particularly appeal to young people, and as their exposure to these activities increases, China is becoming a huge market for them,” said Raf Jennings, a reporter for Asia Times. For instance, there are now more than five magazines in China dedicated to covering extreme sports, and many sports equipment companies are targeting this massive market. “Because of media coverage, advertising, and the eye-catching nature of extreme sports, the industry captures a lot of attention.” To many businesses, extreme sports offer a brand concept related to lifestyle, and the hosting of the World Extreme Sports Games has further introduced more people to this way of life. “The extreme sports market is a niche one, and what stands out about this market is a particular lifestyle. Right now, this market focuses on 5% to 10% of the population,” said Mike Zhang, a Chinese-American who opened the Blue Extreme Sports store in China. He noted that this figure has grown significantly as extreme sports have developed in China over the years. “By 2020, China’s middle class will reach over 200 million people — that’s more than half of the U.S. market. You don’t even need to think about market capacity anymore, just how to serve it.”