LANZHOU, March 3 (Xinhua) -- After skiing at the national snow sports training base in Jingtai County, Gansu Province, 11-year-old Li Sen and his parents from Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, also visited the Yellow River Stone Forest, a well-known local scenic spot near the ski resort.
It took them only 20 minutes of car ride from the skiing resort to the Yellow River Stone Forest, enabling them to enjoy both skiing and sightseeing in the same day.
The integration of sports and tourism has boosted public enthusiasm in northwest China, including Gansu, since the Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
Zhu Jifei, the general manager of the training base, introduced that the total number of visitors to the base's ski resort has exceeded 200,000 in the winter.
"Most visitors to our resort will also take a visit to the Yellow River Stone Forest to enjoy the natural beauty," said Zhu.
Zheng Haixia, the silver medalist of the women's basketball team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics also took a trip to this county last summer.
"I love local basketball and sports atmosphere," said Zheng, adding that many visitors came to scenic spots like the stone forest, and that made her happy for it was good for local development.
Meanwhile in neighboring Qinghai Province, the 2024-2025 Chinese Curling League kicked off in March in Xining, the capital city of Qinghai. The special performance for the curling league was held at a local theatre to show ethnic songs, dances, songs, and acrobatics with local characteristics, bringing an unforgettable feast for the visitors.
In Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, statistics showed that the region has held over 700 winter sports and tourism events during this spring festival vacation.
"Across the country, including in the northwest regions, people's enthusiasm in sports tourism continues to grow," stated He Xiaozu, the director of the Department of Culture and Tourism in Gansu Province. ■
