The “Green Mountains and Clear Rivers” Chinese Leisure Sports Challenge kicked off on May 3rd in Guangzhou’s Huangpu District and the Pinggang River Water Sports Carnival in the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City. Over 500 athletes from more than 30 provinces and cities across China came to compete and experience the ecological beauty of Huangpu.
At 9:00 am, the men’s paddleboard leisure race began. As the referee gives the signal, dozens of paddleboards hit the water, with athletes standing on long boards, paddling with their hands, surfing, racing, and striving to be the first. This is the start of a charming summer on the beautiful Pinggang River.
The opening day’s competitions included a 1-kilometer paddleboard leisure race, a 7-kilometer rural leisure run, and leisure biathlon (1-kilometer paddleboard + 7-kilometer run), with a total prize pool of 200,000 yuan divided among the 12 different categories.
For the biathlon, the competition started with the paddleboard race before transitioning to the running course. The starting point was at the Pinggang River, which stretches 7.352 kilometers and passes through four villages. The river is surrounded by greenery and fish, resembling a beautiful green ribbon. This event will also link the Fenghuang River (Phoenix River), Jiulong Lake (Nine Dragons Lake), and other waters in the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, covering 190.2 hectares and a total length of about 20 kilometers. The running course overlaps with part of the Longhu Ancient Post Road.
In addition to enjoying the scenic beauty of “mountains and rivers in the city and the city in mountains and rivers” along the eight-kilometer course, athletes can also cross the ancient post road dating back to 2000 years ago, take photos at the demonstration zone of rural revitalization and the Jingxia Village at the Knowledge City, participate in themed activities such as trend markets, tent camping, and China-Singapore speciality cuisine, and experience water- and land-based combined leisure sports.
He Bole from Zhuhai City won the men’s paddle board leisure race and was the youngest participant in the category at 17 years old. “It was very exciting to participate in this race. The scenery here is beautiful, and the water is vast. If I have the chance, I will come back to compete again,” he said.
The exciting competition attracted many spectators. Huang, a resident of Zhongshan City, drove with his family to watch the race. ” Since it happened to be the May Day holiday, my family and I came here to watch when we heard about the watersports event. After witnessing the intense competition, we also tried stand-up paddleboarding, which was very fun and easy to learn,” he told reporters, adding that he loved the beautiful scenery and good water quality of the Knowledge City.
Mr. Hou, a Beijing participant who just finished the parent-child leisure race with his child, happily exclaimed, “This is my first time here, and I have fallen in love with this beautiful little city.”
In recent years, the Knowledge City has adhered to the development principles of “integrating industry with the city and prioritizing ecological protection”, promoting the integrated development of “sports, tourism, culture, and consumption”, and continuously improving and optimizing the business environment and industrial environment. In the Knowledge City, the 3-kilometer lakeside greenway of Fenghuang Lake has formed a beautiful waterfront scenery line, creating a high-quality waterfront space for Huangpu District.
Explosion! 2023 “Green Water and Green Mountains” China Leisure Sports Challenge Opens in Huangpu, Guangzhou
On May 3, the 2023 “Green Water and Green Mountains” China Leisure Sports Challenge (Huangpu Station, Guangzhou) and the Pinggang River Water Sports Carnival opened on the banks of the Pinggang River in Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City (hereinafter referred to as “Knowledge City”). More than 500 contestants from more than 30 provinces and cities competed fiercely to fully experience the ecological beauty of Huangpu, Guangzhou.
At 9:00 a.m., the men’s paddle board leisure competition officially kicked off. Following the order of the referee, dozens of paddle boards went down the river together. The players stepped on the long boards, paddled with hands, surfed, raced, and competed for the first place… A charming summer started on the beautiful Pinggang River.
The competitions held on the opening day included 1 km paddle board leisure race, 7 km country leisure run and leisure biathlon (1 km paddle board + 7 km run), divided into 12 groups, with a total prize money of 200,000 yuan.
In terms of route setting, the two races are played in the order of paddle board first and then road running. The starting point of the competition is the Pinggang River, with a total length of 7.352 kilometers. The river is clear and green with grass and fish flying in the shallow bottom. It is like a green ribbon passing through 4 villages. This event will involve waters in Knowledge City, including the Phoenix River and Jiulong Lake, which cover 190.2 hectares and a total length of about 20 kilometers. The road running track overlaps with some routes of the Longhu Ancient Post Road.
During the 8-kilometer route, the contestants can not only appreciate the landscape paintings of “the mountains and rivers are in the city, and the city is in the mountains and waters”, but also travel through the thousand-year-old Qin and Han ancient post roads, check in the characteristic boutique demonstrations of rural revitalization, the “back garden” of the knowledge city, Jingxia Village, In scenic spots such as Straw Hat Square, participate in themed activities such as trendy markets, tent camping, and Chinese and New Zealand specialties, and experience unique amphibious leisure sports.
He Bole from Zhuhai City won the men’s paddle board leisure championship. He is the youngest participant in this group at the age of 17. He said, “This paddling was very enjoyable. The scenery here is beautiful and the waters are vast. I will come to participate next time I have the opportunity.”
The wonderful game attracted many spectators. Citizen Mr. Huang and his family drove from Zhongshan to watch the game. “It happened to be a holiday on May 1st. Our family came here when we knew there would be a water sports meeting. After watching the fierce competition, we also experienced paddle boarding. It was very fun and easy to learn.” He told reporters that the scenery of Knowledge City is beautiful and the water quality is special. Well, the whole family loves it here.
Mr. Hou, a Beijing contestant who had just finished running the parent-child leisure race with his children, said happily, “This is my first time here, and I have already fallen in love with this beautiful small city.”
In recent years, Knowledge City has anchored the development concept of an ecological urban pattern based on the principle of “industry-city integration and ecological priority”, promoted the integrated development of “sports + tourism + culture + consumption”, and continuously improved and optimized the business environment and industrial environment. In Knowledge City, the 3-kilometer green road around Phoenix Lake has formed a beautiful waterfront landscape, creating a high-quality waterfront space for Huangpu District.
Text and pictures｜Yangcheng Evening News all-media reporter Xu Zhentian
Correspondent｜Liu Lichun Huang Rongfang Fan Minling
Translation｜Liu Jiahui
Editor in charge | Wang Nan