Sport policy development in China: legacies of Beijing’s 2008 Summer Olympic Games and 2022 Winter Olympic Games

The aim of this article is to explore Olympic-led sport policy changes (as part of Olympic legacy) for China triggered by the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Although there has been a burgeoning of research interest in analysing Olympic-triggered changes and legacies, with focus on various areas such as economic, sociocultural, and environmental issues, little is known about the changes that the hosting of the Olympics Games stimulates in a host nation’s sport policy. Drawing from policy document analysis, the paper reveals that the two Olympic Games collectively helped to expand the role and value of sport in China and to elevate the status of mass sport. In terms of policy, China’s two bidding experiences led to a streamlining of policy making and legacy planning processes for sporting mega events. The paper ends with a discussion of the implications associated with strategic policy planning for future Olympics hosts.