China eyes 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup bid

Last week, China’s General Administration of Sport unveiled a new plan to promote women’s soccer, including helping promote national engagement in the sport and increase the competitiveness of the professional game.

The plan also revealed the country’s ambition to host the 2031 Women’s World Cup. (It previously hosted the first Women’s World Cup, in 1991, and then again in 2007).

While the men’s game has gone from disaster to disaster and is currently in a state of free-fall, the women’s game actually remains a bright spot. Currently, the women’s side is ranked 15th in the world — and is getting ready to compete in the 2023 World Cup in Australia/New Zealand — while the men’s team is ranked 79th.

Beyond the headline-grabbing World Cup bid, the sports ministry also set high targets of reaching the quarterfinals in next year’s World Cup and at the Olympics in 2024, plus a top-three finish in those tournaments in 2031 and 2032. Those are tough targets. Readers of last week’s column may remember China being drawn into a tricky group at the World Cup next year, one that includes European champions England and a strong Denmark side. If China advances to the group of 16, it will either have to play Canada or Australia, two of the strongest teams in the tournament.

With China’s recent unreliability when it comes to hosting major sporting events, it remains to be seen whether the country will win its bid for the World Cup. Earlier this year, the United States Soccer Federation announced plans for a U.S. bid in either 2027 or 2031, and with the surge in the popularity of the women’s game globally in recent years, FIFA may look to give a future tournament to South America (no country there has yet hosted a Women’s World Cup).

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Li Bingjie breaks world record at swimming nationals

Tokyo gold medalist Lǐ Bīngjié 李冰洁 broke the women’s 400m freestyle short course world record last week at the Chinese National Swimming Championships, ahead of the FINA 2022 World Championships.

The 20-year-old, who was one of the stars to emerge at the Olympics last year, set a new benchmark of 3:51.30, more than two seconds faster than Australia’s Ariane Timus’s mark set at the Worlds in Hangzhou in 2018.

Li, who won gold in the 4x200m relay in Tokyo and bronze in the 400m freestyle, is already the reigning world champion over the short course (25 meters) in the 400m and 800m free. (The length of an Olympic pool is 50 meters.)

Despite being just 20, Li is already building up quite the resume of titles and records. Her bronze medal at Tokyo, where she finished behind Titmus and America’s Katie Ledecky, was an Asian record.

During this year’s national championships over the short course, Li broke the Asian record for 1500 meters at 15:41.80, slashing the record by more than three seconds, and established a new national record in the 200m free by more than second. The previous national record, by Táng Yì 唐奕, had stood for over a decade.

In addition to her Asian record set at the Olympics in the 50-meter pool, Li also has the 800-meter record Asian record at the 2017 World Championship, which she set when she was just 15.

Despite a disappointing long course worlds in June earlier this year, when Li missed out on the final in her preferred 400m as well as the 1500m and finished outside the medals in the 800m, it seems that Li is returning to top form ahead of the short course worlds in December.

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Other Stories:

Ping Pong diplomacy 2: Table tennis breaks through China’s COVID border closure (ABC)

How China fell for the football jersey (Vogue)

The China Sports Column runs every week.