People visit the booth of VAN RYSEL during the 32nd China International Bicycle Fair in East China's Shanghai on May 5, 2024. The event kicked off here on the same day, drawing about 1,460 enterprises to participate. Photo: Xinhua

Many foreign sportswear brands see growth potential in China, as Chinese people become more sports-minded, spurred by summer events including the just-concluded Paris Olympics.

Inquiries and sales of sports-related products from foreign brands have grown in China in recent months, the Global Times learned from several brands' representatives.

Australian swimwear brand Speedo experienced a sales surge for its goggles across Chinese e-commerce platforms. 

The goggles, worn by Chinese Olympic champion Pan Zhanle, have become a top seller in Tmall's swimming gear category, with more than 4,000 pairs sold through one of Speedo's online stores as of Tuesday.

"We have received more inquiries and purchases after Pan got the gold medal in the men's 100-meter freestyle," an employee at Speedo's Tmall shop told the Global Times on Tuesday.

French multi-specialist sports brand Decathlon also saw rising demand for a variety of sportswear and services at its stores in China as the summer months were heated up by a long series of sports events.

Decathlon's July sales of bikes were up 50 percent year-on-year, and sales of gear for racket games rose by 10 percent, according to data shared with the Global Times on Tuesday.

In particular, sales of bike-related products in the western part of China multiplied year-on-year in July, and rock climbing-related products saw sales gains of more than 1,000 percent year-on-year during the summer months in China's Greater Bay Area, Decathlon said, adding that mass sports are pushing the sports economy to a new height in China.

The French company aims to open 20-30 new shops a year for the 2024-25 period. 

Driven by the Olympics and other international events, German sports brand Adidas' revenue in China reached 822 million euros ($898 million) in the second quarter, a 9.3 percent increase year-on-year, the fifth consecutive quarter of growth, according to information shared with the Global Times. 

In the first half of 2024, the company opened more than 100 new stores in China, with local production accounting for 75 percent of sales.

Adidas sponsored prominent Chinese athletes like Xie Zhenye and Wu Yanni at the Paris Games, drawing increased attention in the country. 

"We are satisfied with our current performance in the Chinese market and remain optimistic about future growth," said Kasper Rorsted, Adidas' global CEO.

Besides mass sports, summer events have driven growth in sales of products of niche sports.

"Our sales of bikes for road cycling have surged recently, with online and offline inquiries doubling year-on-year, particularly for bikes priced at about 30,000 yuan ($4,157)," Wang Lan, market manager for Beijing of Specialized, a US-based global mountain bike brand, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Wang said that in 2024, user registrations on various social platforms for CEC-QIYI Cycling Club, the largest cycling services provider in Beijing, grew by about 560 percent year-on-year, with the number of Specialized's buyers increasing by 30 percent. The brand's physical stores in Beijing expanded from five to 11 in the past two years.

In the first quarter of 2024, sales of sports and entertainment goods nationwide grew by 14.2 percent, significantly outpacing the 4.7 percent increase in total retail sales, China Sports Daily reported on Friday.

As living standards rise, there is a heightened focus on physical well-being, leading to increased spending on health-related products, Cong Yi, a professor at the Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

"Since the 2008 Beijing Olympics, interest in the Olympics Games has remained strong in China. The 2024 Paris Olympics, with the Chinese delegation's outstanding performance, has further fueled the Olympic economy," said Cong.

China's vast market offers significant opportunities for sports goods, including global brands that conduct tailored strategies for China, Cong noted.

According to China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the total production value of China's sports industry is set to hit 5 trillion yuan by 2025, equivalent to 2 percent of GDP. Total consumer spending on sports is projected to surpass 2.8 trillion yuan, and the sector will employ more than 8 million people.