On October 1, 2026, Chinese media outlet Guancha.cn published an article examining the background of the collective slump faced by the Chinese sports world at the Nagoya Asian Games.

The article reported that in the men's team table tennis final at the Nagoya Asian Games held on September 24, China lost to Japan, missing out on the gold medal in the event for the first time in 36 years. This defeat in an event that has symbolized China's strength shocked both domestic and international observers.

Furthermore, the article pointed out that the slump was not limited to men's table tennis; in men's badminton singles, strong contenders were eliminated early, resulting in their worst performance ever, failing to reach the top 8 for the first time since their inaugural participation in the Games in 1974. It was also reported that in basketball, all four national teams (men's and women's in both 5-on-5 and 3x3 formats) failed to advance to the finals.

Moreover, in gymnastics, it was noted that a major mistake in the women's individual all-around final led to a loss against a Japanese athlete, breaking their 13-consecutive-win streak. Women's football also struggled in the group stage and knockout rounds, losing 0-2 to North Korea in the semi-finals. As for men's volleyball, their world ranking slipped to 34th place, and they also performed poorly in other international competitions held this year. The article assessed that a chain of setbacks is occurring in sports where China previously held strengths.

Regarding the background of this collective slump, the article analyzed that the fundamental reason is the inability to maintain the "whole-nation system" (举国体制), which has supported China's advances for many years.

According to the article, in the past, China efficiently won medals with limited resources by establishing a nationwide selection network under the financial support of the central and local governments, gathering children in sports schools across the country, and implementing "three-concentration" (三集中) training that integrated meals, studies, and practice.

However, with the progression of a declining birthrate and improvements in the national standard of living, parents' awareness has changed. The probability of succeeding as a professional or top athlete, even after enduring harsh training, is extremely low. Furthermore, the risk of injury is high, and the reality that neglecting academics severely limits second career options after retirement has become widely known. As the impoverished circumstances of past medalists were reported, more families began to avoid sending their children to harsh sports schools. As a result, the number of sports schools nationwide, which once exceeded 5,000, has reportedly plummeted to about 2,100 currently.

Furthermore, as an alternative to compensate for the decline of sports schools, "sports and education integration" (体教融合) is being promoted, but in the actual educational setting, it faces various frictions and obstacles. In general schools where entrance exam competition is intensifying, academic performance is always given top priority, and a systemic barrier still exists, making it difficult for specialized sports coaches to enter the framework of school education.

Moreover, there are many cases where parents and schools use the sports scholarship system as a means to enter prestigious schools, and once admission is secured, the motivation to continue rigorous training is lost. This appears to be leading to the problem of promising young talents abandoning their sport midway.

In addition, the article points out that distortions arising from the process of professionalization and marketization reforms are also contributing to the recent poor performances. It argues that in competitive sports such as football and basketball, youth development, which requires long-term investment, has been neglected, and as a result of solely pursuing immediate talent, this has led to the depletion of next-generation talent.

On the other hand, in 'traditional stronghold' sports like table tennis and badminton, the article mentioned that long-term intensive training camps have become difficult due to the increase in international commercial tours and the obligation to earn points. It also analyzed that with many coaches and athletes from China moving overseas, China's unique techniques and tactical secrets have been shared with the world, and the gap in skill with other countries is rapidly narrowing.

The article emphasized that the integration with school education and the transition to marketization are effective reforms for broadening athletes' life choices and for each sport to establish an independent operating base. However, it concluded that the transformation of the enormous talent development system that has lasted for many years will require time in units of decades, and a temporary slump in international competition results during this transitional period could be 'growing pains' for the Chinese sports world. (Edited and translated by Kawajiri)