Not long ago, Liu Xiaoyu from the University of Nottingham Ningbo received a postcard from an Indonesian friend that read in English: "Thank you, You came to play ping pong with me at the first time and we became friends Because of table tennis, Liu Xiaoyu met this foreign graduate student from his alma mater when he first enrolled in college. "I taught him how to play and he provided advice for my academic planning," he said. Recently, China Youth Daily and China Youth School Media conducted a questionnaire survey on social topics related to sports among college students, and a total of 4429 valid questionnaires were collected. 78.58% of the surveyed college students said they would make friends during sports. The survey results also showed that joining campus sports clubs (71.06%), choosing self-organized sports groups (36.43%), participating in professional sports clubs (25.90%), attending fitness classes (20.90%), and finding partners on online sports social platforms (17.71%) are all ways in which surveyed college students expand their circle of friends through sports. The interviewed college students meet new friends through various forms of sports. Every Wednesday, Liu Xiaoyu makes plans with his senior to play table tennis together, and the two of them go from strangers to familiar. Starting from table tennis, Liu Xiaoyu and his Indonesian friends, including seniors, would also make plans to eat together. Food, culture, learning methods, life planning... gradually became topics on their dining tables. If I hadn't had the opportunity to play table tennis, even in the same college, I might not have come into contact with them, let alone had such a wonderful experience Liu Xiaoyu said, "Table tennis itself is also a sport that requires mutual cooperation and is very suitable for participating with friends." Bao Zhehao, who is studying at the Communication University of China, is the champion of the men's 100m and 200m at the school sports meet, as well as a member of the school volleyball team and the college football team. The football team has new players joining the team every year, and the process of new players joining the team is also a process of making friends. Every December, the football team also organizes an annual meeting; The volleyball team will organize a farewell party for graduating seniors, where everyone will cry, laugh, and hug each other. The survey results of China Youth Daily and China Youth School Media show that 58.38% of surveyed college students often meet sports partners in pairs sports, 49.41% of surveyed college students often make new friends in individual projects, and 42.36% of surveyed college students expand their circle of friends in group sports. Wang Zhizhi, a researcher at the Sociological Theory and Method Research Center of Renmin University of China, has long been concerned about the research in the field of sports sociology. In his opinion, sports become an important way for young people to socialize, which is the embodiment of its value in participation, viewing and education. Many emerging sports and fashion culture are integrated with each other, driven by peer factors, which better meet the social needs of contemporary young college students. During the process of communicating with friends, Wang Zhaojun from Capital Normal University also improved his own sports skills. If you just run on the playground with hundreds of people, you won't achieve the effect of exercise and won't be able to improve your skills. "In Wang Zhaojun's running group, he will discuss with friends ways to adjust his breathing and running pace. Over time, he absorbed the experiences of others and found the most suitable running mode for himself. Bao Zhehao specifically mentioned the school's baseball and softball team, 'This is not a popular sport, so they will be happy to accept those who do not have a foundation in baseball and softball.'. Gradually, the baseball and softball teams formed a virtuous cycle, with some players responsible for training new players and others for participating in games, resulting in a very harmonious team relationship. At the same time, baseball and softball teams have achieved good results, which has also made baseball and softball popular on campus, and more and more students are starting to want to participate in this sport. Han Xuan, from Ocean University of China, is a college student who loves sports. Football occupies almost all of his leisure time. "For me, football is not just a sport, it has become a part of my life," he said. At first, I met some like-minded friends through school clubs, and later through online platforms, I got to know basketball friends from other schools and even cities, and my social circle gradually expanded Han Xuan said. Getting to know oneself and strengthening group identity through sports socialization. Making friends during sports not only helped Liu Xiaoyu correct his wrong exercise habits, but also made him more confident. Exercise naturally causes the body to secrete dopamine, and practicing with friends can also improve the level of exercise. With the support of a sense of competition and achievement, the body also produces endorphins, "said Liu Xiaoyu." After each exercise, my friends and I walk out of the gym with a smile, feeling energetic. "Sociology believes that humans are both individual animals and group animals. Exercise can actually achieve the switching of individual social spaces in different scenarios, thereby helping individuals release tension and anxiety," said Wang Zhihui. Wang Zhihui observed that with the development of the times, sports create more sense of equality in the face of rules, and participants in sports often pursue their own happy experiences more than they have pursued structured meanings in the past. According to a survey conducted by China Youth Daily and China Youth School Media, 77.33% of surveyed college students value the personality of their sports partners when meeting them. Other interests and hobbies (71.38%), technical skills (28.60%), and having common friends (25.85%) are also important factors that surveyed college students consider when socializing during sports. To dance a dragon well, everyone's movements must be perfect in order to present a wonderful dragon dance effect Chen Jiakun is the captain of the Jimei University Dragon Dance Team. In October of this year, the Jimei University Dragon Dance Team won second place in the prescribed routine at the 16th National Dragon and Lion Dance Championships. During the preparation and training period, he and his teammates trained collectively for 10 hours, cooperating with each other to become good friends who cooperated seamlessly. In addition to regular training, Chen Jiakun also arranges with his teammates to exercise strength at the gym and go swimming in the pool. Occasionally, there are unfamiliar classmates who come to greet me and hope that I can take them to practice together, "Chen Jiakun said." I think this is a recognition and encouragement for me, and I feel very happy. "" The process of participating in sports itself is also a socialization process. What role do you play in sports, and how to deal with relationships with others, are all parts that must be experienced in sports socialization, "Wang Zhihui said." The level of personal understanding of your own physical condition has been improved, and young people's mastery of sports knowledge is also improving. "The survey results of China Youth Daily and China Youth School Media show that 58.97% of surveyed college students will take on the role of participants in sports socialization, and 24.97% of surveyed students will take on the role of participants in sports socialization. College students are accustomed to being observers and supporters, and 14.83% of surveyed college students excel at being leaders and organizers. For Han Xuan, turning strangers into football friends is never difficult. On the field, I can meet people of different ages and academic backgrounds. Because of the common 'language' of football, we can break down barriers of age and identity, communicate equally, and learn from each other. On the field, everyone is equal, and we demonstrate our own skills and teamwork spirit, not our personal identity. "He still remembers that during a" ball date ", he met a physics PhD who" happened to encounter difficult problems in class and would seek his advice. Han Xuan believes that this is a fate and opportunity that is difficult to encounter outside the field. When playing football with classmates with a smaller age gap, I take the initiative to organize matches, while when facing senior students, I participate and learn more. This role transition is not abrupt in Han Xuan's opinion. Maintaining a passion for sports and allowing social interaction to naturally take place in bamboo forests, tea gardens, and rural areas... Liu Xiaoyu and his friends have almost explored interesting places in Ningbo through cycling, allowing him from Shandong to immerse himself in the pace of life and natural scenery of Jiangnan cities. After completing his first 20 kilometer cycling around Dongqian Lake, he decided to continue breaking through himself. In October of this year, Liu Xiaoyu and his friends appeared at the 10th Zhejiang Anhui Fujian Jiangxi Province Border Cycling Challenge in 2024. The companionship and encouragement of friends enabled me to smoothly engage in a sport that I had never encountered before. I avoided many detours in buying a car and cycling posture, and devoted more energy to the sport itself. When riding, you may encounter other cyclists on the road. Although they don't know each other, they will greet each other or cheer each other on when climbing the slope During the ride, Wan Qifa from Chongqing University made friends with his "riding friends". "We met when we picked up our bikes from an offline store, and coincidentally, our styles and colors were very similar. So we left our contact information for future ride arrangements. When cycling alone, Wan Qifa pays attention to his speed and strives for speed. However, when traveling with friends, speed is no longer the only pursuit, but more importantly, he enjoys the process, appreciates the scenery along the way, and accompanies each other. When we're with friends, we park to take pictures of the scenery, go to the roadside for a meal, and ride back to school in the evening breeze. "Wang Zhaojun said he" quietly did something big "- a few years ago, he lost 40 pounds through aerobic exercise. Wang Zhaojun is therefore known as the "fitness expert" by his classmates, and he appears in the exercise corner of the playground every day. Whenever he does pull ups or runs, classmates come to ask him about the essentials of the movements, and some even consult him about the "plateau period" of weight loss. Wang Zhaojun did not deliberately seek friends through exercise, but expanded his social circle through it. He smiled and said, "After I gained some popularity through running, some people came to get to know me proactively, and my friends became more and more. But for me, whether it's running or fitness, this so-called social circle is still refined rather than extensive." During cycling, Wan Qifa gradually found the "ice breaking" technique. When he encounters fellow riders on the same route, he will proactively greet them, ask about the cycling route, and invite them to join him. Wan Qifa stated that although he is willing to communicate with others, he always maintains respect for social privacy and boundaries. He believes that in sports socializing, the most important thing is to build closer relationships through shared interests, rather than making socializing forced or forced. As long as you maintain your love for sports, socializing will naturally occur, and the most important thing is to stay happy and at ease, "said Wan Qifa. Wang Zhihui emphasized that there are many risks in sports socialization, such as physical endurance, social deviant behavior, and value collision. The off-road circle, cycling circle, outdoor circle and other sports circles gather based on interests and hobbies, lacking strict entry barriers. Members of different levels and sports concepts gather together, and if they lack sufficient judgment and discernment ability, they are prone to deviate from the original intention of sports socialization. "Wang Zhihui said," Conducting research on the dynamic and changing trends of emerging sports groups is also essential. "Wan Qifa found that there may be" social barriers "in different types of cycling. There are significant differences in riding styles, speeds, and experiences between mountain bikes and road bikes, and mixing them together may not be suitable, "Wan Qifa also said." What I value more is the self challenge and enjoyment during the exercise process, and socializing is a byproduct of exercise. "" If we completely pursue social value, the joy of exercise itself may not be enjoyed. The two should maintain a healthy balance, "Wang Zhihui said. (New Society)