ABSTRACT
Physical activities (PA) and sport for young children have been of concern increasingly since the beginning of the century and become a “heated” topic since 2012 in China. After economic reform was introduced in the late 1970s, significant changes were witnessed in China. It has become an important player on world stage – economically, politically, and culturally. In 2012 non-public kindergartens reached about 124,600 in number, about 68.54% of the total. In 2001 China introduced the “Instructional Outlines of Kindergarten Education” that had a great impact on kindergarten physical activity and sports. Physical education class that had been provided since the early 1950s no longer existed in most kindergartens, and gymnastics that is believed to be suitable to early years and very popular in many Western countries and Japan virtually disappeared from Chinese kindergartens due to its supposed high risks for injuries. The requirement of outdoor activities led to changes in the kindergarten environment.
