After High-Speed Rail Opened, Tennis Enthusiasts Flooded into Jingshan, Hubei

At the end of 2025, the Yangtze River High-Speed Rail Wuhan-Yichang section officially opened, with 350 km/h trains reaching Jingshan, Hubei, completely breaking the transportation barrier for this 'China Tennis Town'.

Jingshan is located in the hinterland of Hubei, between Jingmen and Wuhan. Previously, traveling to Jingshan required a transfer in Wuhan, 150 kilometers away. After the high-speed rail opened, it takes less than an hour from Wuhan to Jingshan. More and more tennis enthusiasts from North, East, and South China are choosing to 'play tennis in Jingshan'.

According to a March 30 report on CCTV's Morning News, after the high-speed rail opened, tennis court bookings increased by 80% year-on-year, and hotel bookings surged by 120%. In 2025, 3.52 million tourists visited Jingshan, and the comprehensive output value of the 'tennis+' integrated industry exceeded 3.5 billion yuan.

Jingshan is the only 'China Tennis Featured City' certified by the Chinese Tennis Association, boasting a friendly tennis ecosystem:

• Affordable Play: Court rates as low as 20-50 yuan/hour/court, with some even free. Players can book multiple venues across the city via the 'Jingshan Tennis' WeChat account.
• Plenty of Courts: Jingshan now has 356 standardized courts, with 5.67 courts per 10,000 people, ranking first among county-level cities nationwide. From anywhere in the city, a tennis court is within a 15-minute walk.
• Many Tennis Buddies: Jingshan's population is less than 600,000, but tennis enthusiasts exceed 100,000, accounting for one-sixth of the population.

Above: Tennis training courts in Wencun Village

'Inviting someone to sweat is better than inviting them to eat' has become a social choice for many Jingshan residents. Jingshan has integrated tennis into its national fitness city plan. In addition to government-built public courts, it also encourages enterprises, hotels, scenic spots, and real estate developers to build supporting facilities, with 70% of the city's courts funded by social capital.

Jingshan's tennis industry began in the 1980s. At that time, the government invested 20,000 yuan to support the Aging Committee in developing tennis. Ten elderly tennis enthusiasts won a provincial championship in Wuhan. A 25-year-old power supply bureau employee, Peng Juying, built Jingshan's first tennis court with a shovel and rake. Subsequently, Jingshan saw its first tennis club and established a tennis association. The 'tennis craze' spread from government offices, taking root and heating up in Jingshan like 'sparks starting a prairie fire'.

Above: Fu Zhenguo, the volunteer manager and coach at Wenfeng Park courts. He was a driver for the county education bureau and has been playing tennis since 1989 without injury.

Image from a 2019 'Hubei Sports' interview

In 2010, Jingshan's Wenfeng Tennis Theme Park (below) was completed and successfully hosted the tennis events of the 13th Hubei Provincial Games, followed by a continuous stream of major tournaments. In spring 2012, 10-year-old Zheng Qinwen won the U10 girls' singles title at the Hubei Provincial Junior Tennis Championships in Jingshan. A few months later, Jingshan was awarded the 'China Tennis Featured City' title by the Chinese Tennis Association.

Today, Jingshan is building a full tennis industry chain encompassing event hosting, youth training, infrastructure upgrades, and cultural tourism synergy:

The inaugural Jingshan Tennis Open in 2025 became the first international event in China to simultaneously host WTA125 and ATP100 men's and women's tournaments in a county-level city. Last year, Jingshan hosted a total of 48 tennis events of various types, with nearly 20,000 participants.

Above: Sun Lulu wins the 2025 WTA125 Jingshan Tennis Open

Established in 2018, Hubei Provincial Tennis School (below) is the only public nine-year tennis school in China, balancing academic and professional training. It attracts many out-of-town students, with over 60% of its 2025 enrollment coming from outside Jingmen.

Tennis-themed health and wellness tourism is becoming a new growth driver. In recent years, Jingshan has received 15 million tourists annually for leisure and vacation, with over 1 million directly driven by tennis.

Recently, at the third press conference of Jingmen City's 'Start Well, Open New Chapter' series (Jingshan special), Jingshan Deputy Party Secretary and Mayor Lu Lei stated that Jingshan will strive to build a national center for tennis sports consumption and a nationally renowned tennis leisure city, with a target comprehensive industry output value exceeding 5 billion yuan.

｜Sources: Jingshan Culture and Tourism, People's Daily, 'Jingjing Tennis' WeChat account, CCTV

｜Image Credits: Jingshan Culture and Tourism, Hubei Provincial Sports Bureau, WTA official Weibo, Xinhua News Agency, WeChat account 'Hubei Sports'