Realistic Path and Enlightenment of Social Forces Running Sports to Promote Common Prosperity ()
1. Introduction
Under the background of comprehensively deepening reform and innovating social management, the concept of “big society and small government” is constantly strengthened, and social forces are playing an increasingly important role in all fields of social and economic development [1]. On May 20, 2021, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued the opinions on supporting the high-quality development of Zhejiang and building a demonstration area of common prosperity, and put forward the major proposition of building a demonstration area of common prosperity in Zhejiang. On October 26, Zhejiang Province held a high-level sports work conference to solve the problem of “building a sports demonstration for common prosperity”. Wenzhou actively explored the combination of social forces and sports in promoting the construction of common prosperity, summarized the “Wenzhou model” and achieved fruitful results. Sports gradually changed from “government run” to “social run”. The transformation involves a series of system reforms and innovations, and constantly breaks down the barriers for social forces to enter the sports field. How the “Wenzhou model” realizes social forces to run sports and the results it has brought to common prosperity are something we need to explore urgently.
2. The Connotation of Social Forces Running Sports to Promote Common Prosperity
In the development process of sports-related fields, it is easy to form an oligopoly only by providing services by the government. For government functional departments, it will not only increase the burden, but also form a business environment without competition, resulting in low efficiency and waste of resources. The purpose of social forces entering the sports field is to break this deadlock and gradually form a benign competition between “government run” and “social run”. Therefore, the research results of social forces participating in the sports field continue to emerge, such as the participation of social forces in the public service of national fitness [2], the cultivation of social forces in competitive sports [3], and the reform of sports system triggered by social forces [4]. Sports social organizations undertake the legal support of government purchase services [5], and the rationality of social forces participating in the field of sports. Common prosperity is the prosperity of people’s all-round development and social progress. It is an all-round three-dimensional comprehensive system [6]. With the development and perfection of socialist market economy, sports run by social forces are also the mainstream of sports reform and development in the future; it is inevitable for China’s sports development to be separated from the market by relying on the reform and socialization of the government [7]. On March 7, Gao Peiyong, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese people’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said at the second plenary meeting: to promote common prosperity, we should make joint efforts from multiple dimensions and all directions. We should not consider only one dimension of distribution, nor should we be limited to one perspective of the economy. We should make overall plans and take into account the requirements of all aspects of society, pay equal attention to economic development, social progress and the improvement of people’s lives, and implement comprehensive policies. As far as sports is concerned, social forces running sports not only increase social capital to provide economic support for common prosperity, but also touch the field of mass sports to continuously meet the growing needs of people for a better life. Social forces running sports is the result of the market mechanism playing the role of basic resource allocation, and the government should not interfere excessively. Therefore, the market structure of sports industry should take social forces as the main body to increase social wealth. In the field of competitive sports under the national system, social forces actively participate in the training of athletes, which not only widens the training channels of athletes, but also increases the vitality of competitive sports. Social forces running sports to promote common prosperity means that social forces make full use of the market mechanism to meet the prosperity of people’s all-round development and social progress. They have the ability to continuously cultivate high-level athletes, meet the people’s increasing fitness needs and promote the level of economic development.
3. The Realistic Path of Social Forces Running Sports to Promote Common Prosperity―Wenzhou Model
In September 2017, Wenzhou became the only pilot unit of sports run by social forces under the State Sports Administration, focusing on supporting social forces to participate in competitive sports; promote social forces to participate in the cause of national fitness; stimulate the enthusiasm of social capital to invest in sports industry; accelerate the cultivation of sports social organizations and the decoupling of politics and society. We will improve the system and mechanism of sports run by social forces, policy system and support Wenzhou to create national sports and health city six aspects are determined as pilot contents. Wenzhou has also introduced “Interim Measures of Wenzhou Municipality on Supporting Social Forces to Set up Competitive Sports Training Institutions”, “Management Measures for People’s Gym” to deepen the exploration of sports policy reform. Through gradual exploration, a Wenzhou model has been gradually formed in the field of sports, with the implementation path of standardizing various matters of sports examination and approval, cultivating various subjects of sports run by social forces, strengthening the service guarantee of sports run by social forces, improving the supervision system of sports run by social forces, and establishing relevant regulations for government purchase of services, so as to fundamentally reform the sports management system and pave a new way for sports run by social forces.
3.1. Strengthening the Capacity Building of Social Forces to Participate in the Development of Competitive Sports
The insufficient capacity of social forces is the restrictive factor of its responsibility to promote common prosperity. The transformation from dominating everything in the name of the country to becoming the master of the country is a great manifestation of China’s social progress. It is time for the sports management department, which manufactures competitive sports professionals in a closed way, to reposition the development direction [8]. With the gradual deepening of sports run by social forces, the services suitable for social forces in the competitive field will be gradually handed over to social forces. However, the entry threshold in the competitive field determines the professional requirements for the ability of social forces, and it is also the guarantee for the quality of sports run by social forces to promote the construction of common prosperity. Lv Zhiwu swimming club has explored the development mode of “government + enterprise + retired athletes” in its own capacity-building. In 2005, as the predecessor of Lv Zhiwu swimming club, Jiajing natatorium was also a training institution for swimming enthusiasts to popularize children’s swimming. In 2013, Wenzhou youth and children’s swimming training base was established in cooperation with Wenzhou Sports Bureau, and began to participate in the training of swimming reserve talents. In order to improve their professionalism, Lv Zhiwu swimming club was founded in 2014 in cooperation with famous swimmer Lv Zhiwu, and the development model of “government + enterprise + retired athletes” was officially formed. In specific practice, the club undertakes the task of transporting excellent athletes and competitive competition to provincial and municipal teams. The sports department provides professional guidance, is responsible for the registration procedures of swimmers, participation funds and reward funds, and subsidizes the club’s training funds of 250,000 yuan every year to ensure that the club carries out training all year round. The participation of excellent athletes has improved the professionalism of the club, expanded the number and scale of training young reserve talents in swimming, and widened the way of training competitive athletes under the national system. At present, Wenzhou social competitive swimming training institutions have trained more than 1500 people, far exceeding the number of swimming in amateur sports schools. Since its establishment, Lv Zhiwu swimming club has sent one first-line member, two second-line members and 15 members to the swimming team of Wenzhou sports school.
In recent years, Wenzhou social forces have participated in the training of a number of excellent athletes, including world trampoline champion Jia Fangfang, gymnastics champion Luo Huan, Asian Games champion, national football team player Zhang Yuning, international chess Super Master and world champion Ding Liren, Chinese chess Super Master and world champion Jiang Chuan, Badminton World Youth Championship champion Lin Guipu, etc. In the journey of pursuing the construction of common prosperity, the sports field has more complex and diverse needs. Social forces enhance their own capacity-building in the process of common prosperity by combining with excellent retired athletes. It is an exploration between social forces and the government under the market mechanism, which adds vitality to the cultivation of competitive sports athletes and the construction of common prosperity.
3.2. Improve the Long-Term Mechanism for Social Forces to Participate in Mass Sports
Common prosperity is the essential feature and fundamental goal of socialism. It pursues the general prosperity of material life and spiritual and cultural life based on the common prosperity of material life. Therefore, although social forces and the government have their own goals, the grand goal of pursuing common prosperity is the same. The original intention of cooperation between the two sides in mass sports is to obtain their respective maximum interests. Establishing a long-term mechanism for the benefit of the masses, the society and the government in mass sports and jointly promoting the construction of common prosperity has become an issue that social forces have to consider when participating in mass sports. After becoming the pilot of social forces running sports in 2017, Wenzhou adopted the original model of “government + community (enterprise)” running people’s gym to carry out the reform of social forces running sports. The mode of “government + community (enterprise)” is that the Municipal Finance provides subsidies, the Municipal Sports Bureau is responsible for purchasing equipment and setting guidance prices, the community or enterprise provides venues and carries out daily management, and the equipment suppliers regularly inspect and maintain the equipment and provide services in the way of “community + volunteers”. Wenzhou Municipal Bureau of sports and Wenzhou Municipal Bureau “Finance issued the measures for the management” people’s gyms, which specifies the construction principles, operating funds, responsible units and responsibilities, charges, application qualifications and procedures of people’s gyms. Together with the code for the construction and service of people’s gyms and the star rating standard of people’s gyms, it forms a “Trinity” complete system for the construction, management and evaluation of people’s gyms, provides a replicable, reference and systematic “Wenzhou experience” for social forces to run sports, and provides a long-term mechanism for social forces to participate in mass sports.
Six associations such as municipal line dance and square dance have settled in the “people’s Gym”, providing 1681 free courses in 2019 alone, serving 23,000 people [9]. As of January 2021, 246 people’s gyms have been built in Wenzhou. Among the 61 people’s gyms with access control, there are more than 50,000 registered members and more than 400,000 fitness times [10]. In the process of realizing common prosperity, the sports department promotes social forces to run sports by means of separating management from management, breaking institutional barriers and innovating supply mode, forming a situation in which the government and sports departments boldly let go, social organizations show their skills and the market actively participates, effectively releasing social vitality. More effectively promote the development of national fitness level and meet the fitness and spiritual needs of the people.
3.3. We Will Implement Preferential Policies for Sports Run by Social Forces
With the development of China’s sports industry, the reconstruction of idle industrial space (waste factories) into sports space is on the ascendant. Private enterprises obtain the use right of idle industrial space through leasing and acquisition, and the cases of transforming it into sports activity space or sports service space are becoming more and more common [11]. However, it is difficult to apply for project permit procedures and site planning approval procedures, especially after social forces undertake the construction and operation, the ownership of sports venues and management rights is unclear. Wenzhou Taohua island ice and snow sports center has fully introduced social funds and developed secondary utilization on the top of municipal public facilities, which has become an innovative measure to explore the layered land supply of urban land space. The project pioneered a new mode of social capital investment, construction and operation. The specific measure is that Wenzhou Sports Bureau and other departments, after overall planning and consultation, social capital cooperates with the municipal sewage treatment plant and uses the roof space of the plant to build a sports complex integrating nine competitive sports such as “skiing, skating, curling, ice hockey, shooting, archery, rock climbing, trampoline and ground throwing”. The “use after demolition” construction project of the national fitness project implemented in Ouhai District, Wenzhou City integrates the resources of open space, marginal land and inefficient land, and its land nature has not changed. Its mode is: as a land provider, township streets provide construction land and places for social forces by means of leasing. Social forces sign a land lease contract for a certain number of years with the land competent department of the people’s government at or above the county level, pay land rent and obtain land use right, so as to solve the problem that it is difficult for social forces to obtain land use right for investing and operating sports venues [12]. By the end of 2017, Ouhai District had a total land area of 44,700 square meters, carried out more than 50 sports activities, held about 40 training activities and received about 1.5 million people.
The creativity of market players has been effectively enhanced, and the demand of society, market and people for institutional innovation is increasing day by day [13]. In the process of promoting common prosperity, social forces invest in the sports industry, especially private capital, which is limited in both scale and scope of investment. Therefore, the sports department should cooperate with the government to implement the measures of “releasing, breaking, supporting and establishing” and give corresponding policy support to social forces. Thanks to relevant policy support, the total output of Wenzhou’s sports industry in 2019 was 31.87 billion yuan, accounting for 1.65% of GDP, The number of sports industrial and commercial entities in the city reached 25,500; Over the past three years, the added value of the sports industry has increased from 6.214 billion yuan to 9.685 billion yuan, an increase of 55.9%. Through policy support, promote sports industry projects, introduce social forces into “social construction”, guide and support social capital to participate in the construction and operation of sports facilities such as sports and leisure bases, characteristic towns, stadiums and sports and leisure complexes, and explore a new way of common prosperity combining government management and market regulation.
4. Countermeasures of Social Forces Running Sports to Promote Common Prosperity
4.1. Social Forces Participate in Competitive Sports Step by Step
Everything is moving ceaselessly. Common prosperity is not a static target state, but a dynamic process evolving from a part to the whole, from a lower stage to a medium and high stage [14]. The exploration of social forces in competitive sports is such a local dynamic development. Of course, in the process of development, different events and sports have their realistic development state, which cannot be fully operated by social forces; In terms of object selection, market-oriented reform should be carried out in an orderly manner and gradually expanded. The reform needs a certain scope, but it is impossible to bring all at once into the scope of reform [15]. Especially under the influence of the national system, social forces should follow the principle of step-by-step in the selection and development direction of sports. Wenzhou has gained good experience in participating in competitive sports with social forces. It has boldly broken down institutional barriers in gymnastics and the first equestrian club facing difficulties, and introduced social forces to participate in athlete training and training. Practice has proved that social forces and social capital can not only revitalize equestrian sports that originally rely on forces outside the system to train athletes, but also cultivate reserve talents for Olympic events such as swimming and badminton, which have always been favored by the national system.
4.2. Forces Participate in Mass Sports and Take into Account All-Round Development
Common prosperity is the prosperity of all the people, so that the fruits of development can benefit all the people more equitably. The participation of social forces in mass sports is to make up for what the government can’t see, and constantly enhance the people’s sense of gain, happiness and security, so that the people can truly feel that common prosperity is not just a slogan, but a fact that can be seen and felt. Social forces participating in mass sports not only provide inclusive sports services and reduce the burden of the government, but also because of the activity of social forces, they can provide services in line with the market demand according to the people’s increasing sports needs and meet the needs of the people’s all-round development. To solidly promote common prosperity is to enrich the spiritual and cultural living standards and promote people’s all-round development. The practice of Wenzhou social forces participating in the construction and operation reform of people’s gyms, sports parks, venues and museums has proved that mass sports can not only be run after introducing social forces, but also play an important role in promoting the all-round development of the masses.
4.3. Social Forces Participate in the Sports Industry and Adhere to Fairness and Justice
Common prosperity is the sharing of wealth under the premise of wealth creation. It is to make a big cake on the basis of fairness and justice, so that all people can enjoy the opportunity to shine in life. The development we pursue is the development that benefits all the people. The common prosperity we pursue is the common prosperity of all the people. The participation of social forces in the sports industry is to give everyone the path to pursue common prosperity, stimulate the participation enthusiasm and creative vitality of the people to the greatest extent, and expand and strengthen the “cake” of the economy together. In the three years since Wenzhou launched the pilot project of running sports by social forces, the added value of the sports industry has increased from 6.214 billion yuan to 9.685 billion yuan, an increase of 55.9%; there are 25,500 sports industrial and commercial entities in the city. Common prosperity is to emphasize the fairness and justice of development. Social members enjoy all kinds of civil rights equally. Through social forces to run sports, social members can choose more paths in the pursuit of a better life.
5. Conclusion
Common prosperity is a historical process and trend. Sports run by social forces are one of the many paths in the process of common prosperity. Social forces form the characteristics of training competitive reserve talents by building a diversified sports operation pattern; the public service system for national fitness is improved by promoting the construction of people’s gymnasiums; by promoting the socialization of mass organizations, we should stimulate the vitality of grass-roots sports social organizations. It is the responsibility of social forces in the process of common prosperity to make people’s lives better through the power of sports.