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Growing momentum

The journeys of Memettursunjan and Kawsar are more than personal triumphs, they are part of a broader transformation in southern Xinjiang, where grassroots and school sports are gaining momentum.

In Yecheng county, nestled between the Taklamakan Desert and the Kunlun Mountains, a basketball team composed of farmers, teachers and township workers recently made national headlines. Last year, they traveled to Guizhou province and won China's "Village BA" championship, sparking a local sports frenzy.

This April, Yecheng hosted its own invitational tournament in a packed gymnasium, backed not by major sponsors, but by local pilaf restaurants and walnut growers. The enthusiasm is built on a decade of grassroots investment.

Since 2012, Yecheng has distributed more than 300,000 basketballs to rural youths and built more than 765 courts, servicing 26 townships, 317 villages and 52 communities. In 2024 alone, it held more than 100 village-level tournaments.

In Bachu county, students at No 3 Middle School no longer chase balls on dusty fields. The school recently added more than 20,000 square meters of new sports grounds, including a seven-a-side soccer pitch.

It now employs 13 soccer coaches, five with certification from either the Chinese Football Association or the Asian Football Confederation.

In 2025, the school joined the youth training system of Shanghai Port FC, offering a professional pathway for talented players from the region.

"My dream isn't just to be great," Memettursunjan said.

"It's to keep playing, keep growing, and, maybe, help someone else do the same."

Xinhua