Reviewing 2025: A surge in national fitness activities is boosting rural vitality, as Gansu Province's "Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project," a key initiative for the people, achieves significant results.

New basketball hoops have been erected, new table tennis tables set up, and new fitness grounds constructed... Over the past year, simultaneous changes have unfolded in 500 villages across Gansu Province.

At the beginning of 2025, the Gansu Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government identified ten practical projects for the people for the year, including the Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project led by the Provincial Sports Bureau.

These encouraging changes are all part of the Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project.

Over the past year, the province has focused on addressing the core need of rural residents regarding "where to exercise," concentrating 50 million yuan from provincial sports lottery funds to support fitness facility upgrades in 500 administrative villages. This effort specifically targeted 200 provincial-level "Beautiful and Harmonious Villages" and rural construction model villages, along with 300 centralized relocation sites for disaster avoidance, precisely covering areas with the most urgent demand for fitness facilities. To solve the problem of "where to exercise," sporting vitality has been unleashed.

During the implementation of the Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project, the Provincial Sports Bureau adhered to the principle of "building what the people need."

So, how were the people's needs determined? The answer, naturally, lay with the people themselves.

The Provincial Sports Bureau innovatively adopted a four-tier implementation model involving "village proposal of construction content, county-level government review and approval, city-level unified bidding, procurement, and installation, and provincial-level coordination and supervision." The construction content avoided a "one-size-fits-all" approach, allowing county-level governments to decide based on actual conditions such as terrain, population structure, and exercise preferences in each village. Statistics show that the focus was primarily on popular facilities like suspended-floor basketball courts and badminton courts, complemented by table tennis tables and fitness trails. Some villages also added children's play equipment, ensuring the facilities were "down-to-earth and genuinely useful," thus accurately meeting public demand.

Jinchang City had 19 villages participating in the project, with Tianshengkang Village and Kangsheng Village in Shuangwan Town, Jinchuan District, being equipped with children's fitness facilities.

"Given the demographic structure of these two villages, which have a relatively high proportion of children, we specifically installed children's fitness facilities," said Qi Yuancheng, Head of the Mass Sports Section of the Jinchang Sports Bureau. By precisely meeting villagers' needs, the areas were scientifically laid out with exclusive facilities like children's slides, fun swings, and balance beams, alongside two standard table tennis tables, creating multi-functional fitness spaces suitable for all ages and fully mobilizing enthusiasm for physical exercise.

The 500 villages involved in the project span 14 prefectures/cities and 86 counties/county-level cities/districts across the province, directly benefiting over 300,000 people. A relevant official from the Provincial Sports Bureau stated that the project has significantly improved the rural fitness facility network, cumulatively adding 624,800 square meters of fitness space, installing 350 sets of fitness trails, 430 basketball courts, 90 sets of children's play equipment, and supplementing with 1,381 pieces of equipment like table tennis tables and badminton posts. This allows rural residents to "see facilities when they step out and exercise close to home," accelerating the construction of an urban-rural integrated "15-minute fitness circle." Solving the problem of "where to exercise" has also unleashed vibrancy in livability.

Among the ten practical projects for the people in Gansu Province in 2024, one focused on ecological and geological disaster avoidance relocation. Thanks to the Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project, this story of "new homes" gained a new chapter in 2025.

Huixian County in Longnan City is a key area for geological disaster prevention and control, and Zhulin Village in Fujia Town is a centralized relocation settlement site in Huixian.

"After relocation, the concentrated living pattern increased interactions among neighbors, making the demand for physical exercise more urgent," explained Shi Chenggang, Head of the Mass Sports Section of the Longnan Sports Bureau. "Furthermore, the settlement is located near the Longnan Economic Development Zone, and many relocated residents work in surrounding enterprises, creating unmet fitness needs after work."

Zhulin Village advanced the Rural National Fitness Enhancement Project alongside the relocation and settlement work. By improving facilities,健全机制, and enriching activities, it allowed relocated residents to enjoy the benefits of fitness after settling in.

"Now, the settlement not only has sturdy housing and convenient employment but also complete supporting facilities and vibrant fitness scenes," Shi Chenggang said. "The people's sense of gain, happiness, and security is continuously improving."

In 2024, villagers moved to their "new homes"; in 2025, they found their "new homes" even more livable. Solving the problem of "where to exercise" has unleashed rural vitality.

Rural fitness facilities are an important vehicle for safeguarding people's basic sports rights and a crucial pillar of people's livelihoods for advancing rural revitalization.

In Minzhou Village, Liuhu Town, Yumen City, Jiujuan, as part of the project, two basketball hoops, two badminton posts, one set of fitness trails (16 pieces), and two table tennis tables were installed.

"This provides villagers with high-quality venues and environments for fitness and recreation, injecting new vitality into rural public spaces," said Xu Aifang, Party Secretary of Minzhou Village.

"I really enjoy using these new fitness facilities in the village; there are ones for legs, back, and arms. It feels like everyone's enthusiasm for exercise has increased," said Yu Zhuhong, a villager from Minzhou Village. "Being able to come and exercise every day improves my mood, and it feels like our village is becoming more vibrant."

Lisi Village, located in Jiangluo Town, Huixian County, Longnan City, sits in the scenic Youlong Chuan area and is the core construction village of the "Youlong Rice Country" rural complex. It has been recognized as a provincial rural construction model village and a provincial "Beautiful and Harmonious Village."

The national fitness enhancement project in Lisi Village was deeply integrated into the overall development of the village, achieving a fusion and叠加 of multiple benefits.

"We connected the sports venues with Lisi Village's 'Youlong Rice Country' paddy field landscapes, camping bases, and farm stays, making them an organic part of the rural complex," Shi Chenggang said. "This enriches the tourist experience, extends their stay, and achieves the goal of 'sports setting the stage, culture and tourism performing, and industry benefiting'."

Fitness venues should not only "exist" but also be "popular."

"Leveraging the newly built venues, we will regularly host popular cultural and sports activities like village basketball games and square dance performances," said a relevant official from the Provincial Sports Bureau. "Combined with events like the Farmers' Harvest Festival and traditional holidays, we aim to build distinctive rural sports activity brands." Through sports events, the goal is to guide people onto the playing fields, foster healthy and civilized lifestyles, deeply integrate national fitness with the construction of rural customs and civilization, and make sports a vital carrier for gathering rural community spirit and promoting new, positive social trends, truly turning every venue into a "vitality hub" for the countryside.