Silver Sports: Theoretical Connotation, Realistic Foundation and Strategic Reflections

Developing silver sports represents a crucial pathway for actively addressing population aging and promoting high-quality development in sports. This study systematically elucidates the new concept of silver sports across three dimensions: concept, logic, and value. The study delves into three structural shifts faced by silver sports, proposing that the contemporary context has shaped the multi-layered generational characteristics of the elderly population, socioeconomic development has molded their diverse social traits, and overlapping opportunities have created their compound dividend features. These three dimensions jointly form the realistic foundation for the development of silver sports. Looking ahead, it is imperative to fully recognize that silver sports is a national long-range program for sports development. Efforts should be accelerated to transform “silver sports” into “silver dividends”, cultivate an open, collaborative and sustainable silver sports ecosystem, and proactively initiate the process of sports industry transformation driven by silver sports. This will fully unleash the profound potential of the silver era to propel high-quality development in sports.