ESPN X Games announced that they will be hosting the first-ever X Games in China in the port city of Shanghai May 3-5th sponsored by Kia Motors in the KIC Jiang Wan Stadium. 200 top world athletes from 20 countries will attend in the disciplines of Aggressive In-line Skating, Skateboarding, BMX Freestyle, Sport Climbing, and a Moto-X demonstration.
“As the X Games franchise has continued to progress and grow internationally, we truly believe the demand for action sports on a global level is already very significant, and that the excitement of the X Games transcends across all cultures,” said Rick Alessandri, senior vice president and general manager of ESPN Consumer Products and X Games Franchise Managing Director. “Our goal has always been to serve action sports and its fans wherever they may be, and we are delighted to bring KIA X Games Asia to China for the next three years.”
While Shanghai does have the largest skateboard park in Asia, the sport itself of skateboarding, which is one of the primary sports in the X Games, is still a tentative subject when it comes to parents. Since the inauguration of the 1-child rule, the precious (usually males, especially those who skateboard) kids who want to learn to skate or participate already, do so without much support of parents who mostly do not want their only child participating in what is considered “extreme.” Basketball, table tennis, martial arts are for more acceptable to them than sports that have a label of being extreme. This holds true for snowboarding (vs. skiing), BMX, and of course, Moto-X.
While it’s admirable that the X Games is showcasing in Shanghai, there will be a serious need for education of the parents’ generation of what the sports are all about. And the connotation of “extreme” is going to have to change. For example, when DC skater Danny Way came to China and jumped the Great Wall, while it made for excellent press and footage, according to Label Networks field researchers and reporter managers in Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou, the event was perceived locally as a spectacle—a rather oddball “American” thing, than actually instilling more kids to learn to skate. However, sometimes it takes a Spectacle to plant seeds for the future.
As we’ve tracked in our last two China Youth Culture Studies, action sports are an important and growing culture among youth in China, but it’s a different gig. They are often mixed with other national sports, and adaptations made thereof (think: Parkour in Paris; Drifting car culture in Tokyo). The lifestyle of the sports, including the apparel, footwear, styles, and attitudes of its heroes, particularly American and Japanese action sports heroes, are just as attractive, or moreso, than actually doing the sports themselves. Not to mention the fact that skateboarding in say, Tiananmen Square in Beijing or the streets of Shanghai is illegal, and most kids don’t have BMX bikes. Those that have motorbikes, don’t have motocross bikes or places to ride other than the city streets. When it comes to doing X Games sports, the aggressive inline skating event probably makes the most sense in China because it’s legal and skates are more available in urban environments.
When it comes down to it, currently Jackie Chan is the real “extreme” hero in China, influencing youth culture with his clothing brand as quantified in our China Youth Culture Studies, as well as influencing entertainment patterns and sports participation. If not Jackie, then it’s the American NBA. Basketball is at an all-time high among males and females. If say, the Jackie Chan brand sponsors the X Games, or the NBA, then it may be a different sort of China X Games, and probably a different sort of sports line-up. But then this may also mean greater acceptability among parents and the next generation now being introduced to the concept of the X Games.
For more information about China and sports in Label Networks’ China Youth Culture Study, please contact info@labelnetworks.com or call (323) 630-4000.
