Time Out round up some of Shanghai's non-mainstream sporting activities to get involved in. Get fit and have fun with some of the many alternative sports clubs in Shanghai including Ultimate, Go-karting, chessboxing, slam ball, underwater hockey and more
Ultimate
Imagine what happens when Frisbee meets American football (without all the gear), and you've got Ultimate. To get your flying disc fix, Shanghai Ultimate Players Association (SUPA) play Monday nights at Jingan Worker's Stadium (8-10 pm), and Saturday mornings at Shanghai Community Sports Club (10 am-mindday). Sessions cost 50 RMB or 40 RMB for students. They also run competitive league fixtures in spring and autumn, as well as pick-up games on Saturday all year round.
Jingan Workers Stadium. 888 Changping Lu, near Jiaozhou Lu.
Go-karting
Undoubtedly the most fun karting centre in town, Disc Kart's 550m indoor racetrack is full of twists, runs and opportunities for overtaking. It's 100 RMB in a slower car or 120 RMB in a faster car for eight minutes of track time. While we don't encourage, or endorse, drink driving, the beers here are cheap and there's plenty of seating by the bar overlooking the track for a post-lap pint.
Disc Kart, 809 Zaoyang Lu, near Guangfu Lu (62222880)
Rock climbing
Give your entire body a workout at Shanghai Stadium Rock Climbing Centre. Known as one of the best climbing walls in the country, 90 RMB on weekdays and 100 RMB on weekdays will grant you all-day climbing/bouldering --but bear in mind it's single entry, so if you leave you'll have to pay to get back in again.
Bubble football
Although it technically involves a ball, bubble football is like a combination between Zorbing and conventional football where it's nearly impossible to get near the ball, let alone kick it. Instead, you simply throw yourself at opponents to knock them off balance before attempting to win possessions back. Head down to Cages where it's 800 RMB to the pitch for half an hour for a maximum of 12 people ( call ahead to book)
Cages, Third Floor, Jingan Sports Centre 428 Jiangning Lu, near Wuding Lu (529995273; cages.cn)
Paintballing
Go to Songjiang and shoot your friends-with paint, of course. The price of a session at Weicheng paintball covers admission, equipment and insurance, with 210 RMB getting you 90 bullets, 280 RMB 180 bullets and 350 RMB 300 bullets. It's a great place to go for a team-building day, especially if you want to snipe your boss to get back at them for all that unpaid overtime.
Weicheng Paintbull Shooting Sports Centre, 388 Chenhua Gong Lu, near Rongxing Lu
Parkour
Make like James Bond at LINK Parkour's training sessions. The school provides full-body training through the use of four fundamentals of sport and human movement: running; climbing; jumping; balancing. Classes take place Tuesday-Friday from 7-8:30 pm and on Saturday and Sunday from 4:30-6 pm: youth classes are also available. A trial session will set you back 100 RMB.
LINK Parkour, Second Floor, Building 69, SOHOGYM Swimming Hall, 595 Yongtai Lu, near Shangnan Lu (18602112931)
Chessboxing
What As its name suggests, Chessboxing is a combination of the two disciplines – you attempt to outsmart your opponent on the chessboard and beat the living daylights out of them in the ring. A full match has 11 rounds and the first starts with chess moves, before alternating with boxing until the end. There are short breaks between chess and boxing, and you only need to beat your opponent at either before becoming the victor. Sound easy? Let’s just say you’d be struggling not to move your bishop sideways after taking an uppercut. Heavy on the machismo, Chessboxing could very well be the ultimate sport to determine the perfect human who has both brains and brawn, to form a Mars colony. Here on earth, the player who racks up the most points in a month during chess practices gets a bottle of whisky.
When Boxing practices are held almost every day at two affiliated places – the Aboro Academy on Changhua Lu in Jingan and Longwu Kungfu Centre on Maoming Nan Lu (near Julu Lu). A combined chess-cum-boxing sparring session is held every Sunday at the latter.
How to join All you have to do is fill in the contact form on the website. Joining the club is free, but those interested in boxing lessons need to sign up for a membership with either of the two gyms. Alternatively, you can opt to pay a drop-in fee of 100RMB per class at Longwu Kungfu Centre.
Where
What A game where you throw balls at your opponents. Yes, it’s that simple. Of course, there are quite a number of rules to the game, like how you’re supposed get off the court when you’re hit, or how the thrower is the one ejected instead when his opponent manages to catch the ball, but it’s basically just as you saw it in the Ben Stiller film. There isn’t a dodgeball club per se in Shanghai, but the guys at the Allianz Jinqiao Arena and ASAS can help you hook up with like-minded enthusiasts looking for some action. Allianz Jinqiao Arena hosts a dodgeball league that was recently created after organisers realised that hurling balls at strangers before knocking back a few drinks after was a great way to unwind following a tough week in the office. In addition to dodgeball, the Allianz Jinqiao Arena hosts leagues and tournaments for football, cricket, softball, netball and lawn bowls. During the winter months it also hosts baseball, hockey, lacrosse, and Ultimate Frisbee sessions. ASAS’s league is held at Cages Shanghai.
When Anytime you want to play.
How to join Court rentals at Arena are priced at 300RMB per hour (weekdays) and 450RMB per hour (weekends).
What A little bit of everything (football, basketball, rugby) mixed into one highly athletic game. Gaelic football is a highly popular traditional Irish sport that requires players to kick, bounce and hand-pass a leather ball before scoring in the opposing team’s goal or between upright posts. Founded in 2002, the Shanghai Gaelic Football Club is one of the most organised sporting clubs in the city and it boasts having a diverse mix of players from different nationalities. They pride themselves in being more than just a sporting establishment, as they have a keen focus on the social side of things too. The club also provides free professional training for children.
When Training sessions are held every Tuesday (8-10pm) and Saturday (1-3pm) at Luwan Stadium and the Shanghai Community Sports Center respectively. The club even has a free bus that takes members from The Camel Puxi to SRFC at midday on Saturdays.
How to join You get to attend a few training sessions for free before deciding if you want to sign up with the club, which starts at 400RMB for a non-playing social membership. There are various membership plans available which offers a great deal of flexibility.
Shanghai Community Sports Center 2700 Zhangyang Bei Lu, en Wuzhou Avenue
What An activity for running enthusiasts with a drinking problem. But this isn’t quite Alcoholics Anonymous. Instead, it’s a social network that is steeped in history – it was started in 1938 in Malaysia by a group of British colonial officers who wanted to foster camaraderie through running and copious amounts of beer. The activity starts when a group of ‘hares’ lay a trail for other members, playing the ‘hounds’, to follow. Upon reaching the end of the trail, members get to socialise, drink and generally have lots of crazy fun. We hear you may have to perform an initiation ritual when you first join (like drinking beer from your muddied shoe after the run) so if this sounds like your kind of activity, turn up for their weekly Sunday runs.
When According to Elvo, a group member, these guys run ‘every Sunday at 4pm without fail, regardless of rainstorm, hailstorm, thunderstorm, sunstorm, sandstorm, beerstorm or whatever storm.’ Be prepared.
How to join Just turn up at the location stipulated on the website. There is no membership fee but you should chip in for all that beer you’re going to be chugging.
Where Running locations change every week, so contact the club for more information.
What Commonly known as the ‘art of movement’, parkour is widely thought to have been popularised by the 2001 Luc Besson film Yamakasi. The objective of this discipline is to traverse obstacles in a fluid and effective manner, without the use of any tools. Martino Chen, a Shanghai parkour practitioner, says the sport was birthed here in 2009 when a group of enthusiasts came together. In 2012, the same group of people then started Link Parkour, a well-equipped gymnastics facility for interested followers to get proper guidance and safe training. It now has a core team of 10 instructors, with about a dozen students having signed up for courses. For a more casual group, you’ll usually find parkour practitioners at Xuhui Riverside most weekends.
When Classes are only held during the weekends – indoor lessons on Saturday and outdoor ones on Sunday.
How to join If you’re already well versed in parkour and want to become an instructor with Link, you just need to pass a test. Those looking to sign up for classes can turn up for training on the weekends. The indoor class package of 10 classes costs 1,500RMB, while the outdoor package of five classes is 400RMB per month.
What Now everyone can dunk like LeBron James. Played on a typical basketball court but with two trampoline areas on either side below the baskets, Slam Ball is a relatively new sporting craze in Shanghai. The scoring system is similar to regular basketball but dunks are worth three points, in addition to shots made outside the three-point arc. Slam Ball Asia has formed a league last year, and they are currently recruiting new members for the 2017-2018 game season. If you’re looking for a non-committal experience, you can rent the court for 150RMB per person per hour.
When Anytime; or see summer camp details below
How to join If you’d like to home your skills, the summer camp is from Monday 4-Friday 29 August for 3,088RMB.
What Invented in England in 1954, underwater hockey is pretty similar to regular hockey, except for the fact that you’ll need to be really good at holding your breath in a pool. Instead of a regular stick, underwater hockey players use a short bat or pusher that looks like a blunt dagger, and they wear fins instead of spikes. The Shanghai Azures are a fun-loving bunch of people who get together most Sundays for some underwater action, and they’re happy to welcome anyone comfortable with wearing a diving mask and a snorkel. Set up three years ago by a Colombian and Singaporean, the group’s training sessions usually comprise three parts – a warm up swim, swimming while wearing hockey gear and working on basic skills, and playing a practice game.
When Every Sunday, from 1pm.
How to join Simply turn up for a Sunday session. There is no membership fee, but participants should contribute to the lane rental fee, which ranges between 50-100RMB per person depending on how many people turn up.
