Sports in Longyan have achieved spectacular results in the past few decades and will make a bigger leap in the future, said city Party Secretary Liang Jianyong.

The city has seen an ace lineup of elite athletes on all fronts, led by Lin Dan (badminton), He Wenna (trampoline), Shi Zhiyong (weightlifting) and Zhang Xiangxiang (weightlifting), who have together bagged five gold and two bronze medals since the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Liang Jianyong, Party Secretary of Longyan, weighs in on how to enhance Longyan’s sports and related industries, at a meeting with a press corps in Longyan, Fujian province, Sept 21. [Photo by ifeng.com, provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Longyan athletes have won 70 gold medals on the international stage as of July 2014, statistics show.

"These figures only represent the past, not the future," said Liang in a Monday press meeting to introduce Longyan's development goals.

Authorities have put their heads together to take the city’s sports to the next level and trigger a growth in sports industry, Liang said.

"The key is how large a platform we can provide for the budding athletes and sports businesses."

The first step the government will take is to increase investments in sports facilities at grassroots levels, as Liang noted "talent always comes from the masses".

There are more than 5,100 sport-related venues across the city, including 27 multi-functional playgrounds at urban communities and over 1,700 fitness projects in rural areas. The Longyan Sports Center, a first-class sports park, will expand in the near future.

Meanwhile, Longyan will specially foster some sports, taking advantage of star athletes like five-time world badminton champion Lin Dan.

In Shanghan county, Lin's hometown, badminton is now a dominant sport, with dozens of grassroots and official tournaments held every year.

Liang revealed that Liancheng county is the next key area for sports growth. He plans to promote baseball, rock-climbing and boxing in the county.

Baseball, the most popular sport in Taiwan, was introduced to Liancheng in 2009 and has gained ground, sweeping schools with an increasing number of teenagers getting involved.

A baseball bat production base was funded by Taiwan's entrepreneurs in Liancheng. With an estimated output of 200,000 bats in 2015, it is on course to become the world’s No.1 baseball equipment factory.

Furthermore, Liang said that sports can be related to more industries including senior-care service, using health and tourism to generate more profits.

The local government is seeking investors for the idea, as Liang explains that Longyan will appeal to more people with its top-notch air quality and its famous "red tourism".

"I believe that sports, after resonating with other industries, will grow significantly and thus help produce more native sports stars, whose fame will benefit Longyan’s sports industry in return."