Baseball and the countryside, two originally irrelevant things, have been integrated perfectly through the bold exploration of Xujiadai Village. Since the base opened in November 2018, it has hosted nine national and provincial sports events and attracted more than 520,000 visitors last year. The quiet countryside became lively rise.

"Beautifying the environment can be done as long as you take the time to do it, but it is not easy to turn a beautiful landscape into a flourishing economy," Liu Jianqun said. In 2017, Liu Jianqun returned to the village. At that time, every family in the village raised pigs and chickens, and the environment was dirty and bad. After the environmental renovation, the environment is better. But how to use wastelands was a problem.

There are many businessmen in Pinghu. During an exchange, Liu Jianquan learned that they like to play baseball. But baseball bases are usually in big cities. Can the village build a baseball base? After investigation, the first baseball base which meets the international standards was completed in the village. 

“Rural revitalization needs breakthrough, and the sports industry is our breakthrough.” Liu Jianqun said that rural tourism is in full swing now, and the key to success is to find our own advantages.

(Photo via Wang Jianlong)

Building a baseball base is not just about holding events. For example, in a junior tournament, not only do the players come but also their families come. An event lasts from 7 days to 10 days, which means they have to eat, live, travel, buy, and entertain here. Hence, a complete industrial chain has been formed. 

During the May Day holiday last year, more than 10,000 people came here every day. Liu said that tourism companies in the village generated more than 10 million yuan last year, and hotels, as well as farmhouses, also generated more than 5 million yuan. The baseball flying in the air created a channel that promoted economic development of Xujiadai Village.

In order to integrate the sports industry and rural tourism, the village established Jiaxing countryside garden. Now, Xu Jiadai village has a bigger goal -- to become the "No.1 baseball village in China", making playing baseball in the countryside a new fashion.

(Compiled by Xu Yuhong, translated by Yu Fei)