Get Back on (the) Track

By Christian Seiersen

From balls to boats, Shanghai has a diverse and flourishing sports community, with a variety of clubs offering opportunities to pursue your passion or simply make new friends.

Shanghai Cricket Club

Since staging China’s first recorded cricket match in 1858, the Shanghai Cricket Club has retained its long tradition and passion for the sport. Nowadays the club boasts over 250 members, who play every Sunday in one of three divisions.

The lowest division plays 20-over cricket, accommodating beginners and less experienced cricketers. The cricket club also fields two more experienced representative teams: the Dragons and the Pirates, who play 50-over cricket and participate in international tours.

Interested cricketers can get in touch with the club by emailing [email protected], and will be put in contact with one of the four member teams based on a number of criteria including which catchment area you fall into.

However if you’re just looking for a taste of Shanghai cricket to see if it’s right for you, one of the clubs, Bashers CC,  holds free weekly practice sessions every Thursday from 6 - 8pm at the San He Hua Yuan tennis courts (123 Yanping Lu, near Xinzha Lu).

Perfect timing then to get in training for cricket season, which begins in mid March.

Price: RMB 2,000 upwards each season for administrative fees and playing dues. 

Shanghai Rugby Football Club. 2700 Zhangyang Bei Lu, near Wuzhou Dadao.

Dulwich College International School, 266 Lan’an Lu, near Biyun Lu. Web: www.shanghaicricket.com

Shanghai Boat and Yacht Club

From veteran yacht-owners, to landlubbers itching to get behind the keel, the Shanghai Boat and Yacht Club caters to all tastes. Started in 2001, the club has been integral in the sport’s growing popularity and has developed Shanghai’s yachting community with monthly social events in downtown Shanghai, including quiz nights and presentations at O’Malley’s Irish Pub (42 Taojiang Lu, near Hengshan Lu. Web: http://omalleys-shanghai.com).

The club owns a variety of boats from training dinghies to catamarans for members looking to take to the waters of Dianshan Lake. It also offers training programmes including lifesaving, which is useful not only in honing yachting skills but also a valuable qualification to have. Boats are available to all members but the training sessions and regattas are subject to additional costs.

Price: RMB 5,000 (plus RMB 500 joining fee), a yearly membership lasts from 1 April to 31 March the following year. The club will be hosting an Open Day on 8 September at the club house on Dianshan Lake where potential members can try their hand at sailing.

Shanghai Boat and Yacht Club. West shore of Dianshan Lake, Qingpu District,
near Grand View Garden (Da Guan Yuan). Email: [email protected]. Web:
www.shanghaibyc.org