China issues guidelines on sports industry development

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China's State Council released guidelines on Friday to speed up the development of sports, aiming to grow the industry to a two trillion yuan (about 290 billion U.S. dollars) business by 2025.

Sports serve as a powerful engine for economic growth, a statement from the council said, promising more events and recreational activities for citizens.

The guidelines also pointed out that China will launch 100 popular competitions and 100 homegrown events by 2025, with great importance attached to the development of professional and international sports.

Sports including soccer, basketball, volleyball, tennis, and table tennis will take advantage of their professional league systems in managing both competitions and athletes.

Moreover, China's "Hall of Fame" will honor the nation's prominent athletes and further encourage young players to pursue sporting careers.

Innovation will be targeted at selected sports such as marathons, cycling and extreme sports.

Winter sports will be warmly welcomed ahead of the preparations for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, which will take place from February 4-20 in Beijing and neighboring Hebei Province. The games will be an opportunity for China to develop its winter sports industry in specific events such as speed skating and mountain skiing.

More international competitions are welcome to be launched in China as their cooperation will further foster the sustainable development of sports events and their host cities, the guidelines said.

And, more companies will be encouraged to join the industry. China will push reforms to streamline and speed up the approvals process for sports-related companies.

The aim is also to optimize the sports industry with a collaborative and sustainable platform in terms of investments, marketing, industrial layout and cooperation with multiple sectors such as the Internet and tourism.

(With inputs from Xinhua)