People play billiardsthestreet inYusha ncounty, east China's Jiangxi Province. (Photo/Beijing Daily)

Yushan, a small county within Shangrao city in northeastern Jiangxi, once hadlittle connection to billiards. Today, it's home to more than 200 billiard clubsand has developed a complete billiards industry, regularly hosting majordomestic and international tournaments.

Beijing Xingpaiweiye Sports Goods Co., Ltd., founded in the 1980s, initiallyrelied on imported slabs to produce high-quality tables, with each slab costingup to $2,000.

In search of cost-effective alternatives, the company discovered the idealmaterial in Yushan's Zhangcun town - a bluestone prized for its elasticity,water absorption, durability and anti-static properties. The region boastssubstantial bluestone reserves, estimated at 3 billion cubic meters.With government support, the company established a billiard table slate factoryin Yushan in 1997 and steadily expanded operations

Today, Yushan has become China's largest production base for billiard tableslate, with products sold nationwide and exported to over 70 countries andregions, including the U.k. and ltaly.

The county produces 250,000 billiard slabs and 50,000 billiard tables annually,generating over 1.5 billion yuan ($206 million) in output value.In 2015, Yushan hosted the first Chinese Billiard World Championship, drawing300 players from nearly 30 countries and regions. In 2016, the Snooker WorldOpen was held in Yushan, strengthening the county's growing reputation as abilliards hub.

Since 2015, Yushan has hosted six sessions of the Chinese Billiard WorldChampionship and six sessions of the Snooker World Open. These eventsspurred the opening of over 600 hotels, creating jobs for more than 60,000people in the local tourism sector.

The Yushan Sports Center - the world's first modern stadium dedicated to cuesports -opened its doors in 2019. The Yushan International Billiards Academywas established in 2021, launching its formal recruitment program to developthe next generation of billiards talent. In 2024, the World Billiards Museum andthe World Billiards Hall of Fame were established in Yushan

On the opening day of the 2025 Snooker World Open, 20-year-old Xing Zihao.a graduate of the Yushan International Billiards Academy, went head-to-headwith England's Judd Trump. Despite the loss, the opportunity to competeagainst a world-class player proved invaluable

Watching from the sidelines, Zhong Yujie, a young woman from Yushan,captured the moment on camera. In 2021, at just 15 years old, she visited thenewly established academy, fell in love with the sport and enrolled in itsinaugural class.

'l started watching Chinese billiard tournaments when l was a kid,' sherecalled. 'l didn't understand much, but the atmosphere was exciting. Theacademy's facilities and expert coaches were a big draw.'

Most of her classmates at the academy had a background in billiards, butZhong started from scratch. 'l would often practice until the billiard roomclosed, and sometimes l would end up in tears from sheer frustration,' she said.

At 16, Zhong's dedication paid off as she became the academy's first femaleplayer to break into China's top 16 in women's billiards. Following graduationshe remained at the academy as an assistant coach and obtained her referee'scertification.

At the opening of the 2025 Snooker World Open, Liu Yangbo, champion of the2025 Jiangxi 'Village Cue League' billiards tournament, made a special guestappearance alongside the pros.

In Yushan, billiards rooms are everywhere. To promote fitness through cuesports, the county launched the 'Village Cue League' billiards tournament.drawing inspiration from the 'Village Super League' football competition insouthwest China's Guizhou Province

The first 'Village Cue League' billiards tournament in 2024 attracted nearly1,000 participants from 40 villages in Yushan. During the 2025 Spring Festival,the tournament's second edition expanded significantly, attracting over 5,000competitors and more than 100,000 spectators.