Despite its huge population, China was not much of a global force in sports until the 1980s.It was very good at table tennis, though. The first major international breakthrough for China came in 1981 when its women’s volleyball team won the Women’s Volleyball World Cup.    1    (understandable), sports fans went crazy.

Inspired by the victory, China invested more of     2    (it) limited resources in training athletes. The investment     3    (pay) off, as China got its first Olympic gold medal in shooting in 1984. In all, Chinese athletes won 15 gold medals in the Los Angeles Olympics, setting the course where China is becoming     4    global sports power.

    5    China investing more resources in the sports, thanks to the fast-paced economic development and winning world titles becoming normal for Chinese athletes, the government started encouraging ordinary citizens to play sports.

The 2021-25 national fitness plan, for instance, says that by 2025,38.5 percent (compared with 37.2 percent in 2021) of China’s population would take part in regular sports activities. It not only builds more sports facilities,    6    enables every citizen to reach the nearest sports exercise places within 15 minutes.

While the young may prefer to play on the basketball courts or soccer fields, others use the running tracks in the sports facilities.   and parks for doing physical exercise in their community     7    (equip)with facilities.

Square dancing is popular among senior citizens, especially women. As night falls, almost all squares in cities and towns turn into dance floors     8    millions of middle-aged and elderly people practice square dancing accompanied by music.

Marathon is another popular sports discipline. In 2019 alone, the marathons attracted 7.1 million     9    (participate).

Thanks to these developments, the sports industry’s value increased to 2.74 trillion yuan in 2020. The 2021-25 national fitness plan’s goal is     10    (double)that figure by the end of 2025.

Still consider the CBA China’s     1     (popular) basketball league? Think again!

With over 10,000 spectators (观众)     2     (roar) on their feet every night,     3     amateur inter-village basketball tournament held last week in Southwest China’s Guizhou province has become a massive hit online.

In 2018, the village-level tournament     4     (include) in the Chi Xin Festival, which celebrates harvest on the sixth of June on the lunar calendar. Since then, the annual competition has become a center for enthusiasts from nearby and many who drive up to 200 km from Guiyang and surrounding areas     5     (experience) the unique gathering.

“The number of spectators and the participating areas that the tournament covers     6     (increase) for four continuous years, and the key to its popularity is     7     this tournament truly belongs to local people and connects neighborhoods like no other event does. The proximity (邻近) to each and every player and spectator makes it special,” said Cen Jianglong, a co-organizer of the tournament,     8     has played basketball recreationally for 20 years.

During the four-day competition, over 50 million online     9     (view) had tuned in to watch live streaming of the games. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian also joined in the fun, sharing a video clip of the games on Twitter accompanied by the message: “The rural basketball match in Guizhou is on!     10     a great atmosphere!”

The ancient Chinese martial art(武术) tai chi has     1     (increasing) become popular among New Yorkers, thanks to the efforts         2     (make) by former world martial art champion Chen Sitan. From five-year-old kids to the elderly in their 70s, people from different cultural backgrounds in New York have been attracted to the martial art.

Chen started learning martial art at the age of six. By the age of 30 when he ended his athletic career, he     3     (win) 32 gold medals in Chinese and international competitions. After     4     (train) athletes in sports teams for several years, Chen decided to come to the United States in 2003     5     (bring) Chinese culture to more people around the world through tai chi. “Tai chi is not only about     6     (compete); it means much more,” said Chen. This gentle form of exercise helps keep     7     (strong) and balance, and can be     8     activity suitable for almost everyone.

Although tai chi is already getting popular in fast-paced New York City and neighboring areas, Chen is not satisfied     9     the achievements he has made. He is developing a training program through     10     his school could train more excellent teachers.

Asia’s first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) world champion Weili Zhang knocked out Poland’s Joann a Jedrzejczyk to win the chance     1     (challenge) for the women’s strawweight title at UFC275 on June 12, 2022 in Singapore.

The fight     2     (set) off wild celebrations on Chinese social media so far. The 32-year-old is seen as a genuine star. She became China’s first UFC champion in 2019. “Together we put girl power on display in the Octagon (八角笼). We’ve proved to people     3     said we cannot do certain things that we can.” Zhang said after the fight when     4     (interview) on stage.

Zhang’s fighting dream began young. Her childhood hero, Bruce Lee,     5     (inspire) her to take up kung fu when she was 6. Later, she learned sanda. But at 17, her sanda fighting career ended because of     6     (injury). Over the next six years, she tried different jobs, like a kindergarten teacher, a saleswoman     7     a bodyguard.

However, she still dreamed of being     8     fighter. In 2013, she started learning MMA. Many people think that the sport isn’t     9     (suit) for the “weaker bodies” of women. But Zhang     10     (strong) disagrees. “Anything men can do, women can do, too—and we can do it just as well as them.” Obviously, she has proved it’s true!