A large sports venue in Taizhou, Jiangsu. [Photo/ourjiangsu.com]

In 2018, Taizhou was the only city among Jiangsu's 13 municipalities without a large-scale sports venue. Today, the city boasts the Taizhou Sports Park and features 16 newly renovated competitive arenas and a high-level training facility.

In 2023, the Taizhou Sports Park expanded its services to include football, basketball, swimming, table tennis, tennis, martial arts, rock climbing, and more, attracting over 100,000 fitness enthusiasts. It also hosted four large-scale concerts with over 23,000 attendees and 10 major sporting events with over 1,000 participants each.

A sports park in Taizhou, Jiangsu. [Photo/ourjiangsu.com]

Since 2020, Taizhou has built at least one fitness facility in every village and community and multifunctional sports fields in every town. Over the past two years, the city has built 52 sports parks, 558 sports courts, 650 fitness paths, and 106 kilometers of fitness trails. As a result, its per capita sports facility area rose from the lowest to the second-highest in Jiangsu.

With 43.7 percent of its population regularly engaging in sports and a 93.2-percent fitness rate, Taizhou ranks among the province's top cities in terms of physical activity.

A young man runs on a walking path along the Fengcheng River. [Photo/ourjiangsu.com]

The integration of sports and tourism has transformed the city's image, with international and national events boosting local tourism. In 2024, Taizhou will host three international events and 16 national competitions, making it a rising destination for sports enthusiasts.