For most Chinese students, extracurricular athletics means badminton, ping-pong, basketball, or volleyball. But for 400 students in Shanghai, afternoon sports means teeing off at the green—and attendance is mandatory.

The Experimental School of Foreign Languages Affiliated to East China Normal University (ESFL for short) is a government-supported primary school with ties to two Chinese colleges. Since the second school semester in 2015, the school has run a compulsory golf course to be taken by all of its first- and second- grade students, twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays.

“Playing golf won’t just improve students’ athleticism. It will also train them in international etiquette and improve their character,” ESFL principal Xia Haiping told Chinese media outlet The Paper.

The requirement is particularly surprising given the Chinese government’s avowed disapproval. Mao Zedong banned the sport in 1949, calling it a “sport for millionaires.” The ban lasted until 1984. As part of Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign, authorities are shutting down golf courses, and banning Communist Party members from partaking in the game.

ESFL isn’t the only primary school in China to teach golf. The Paper counted 30 primary schools in China offering golf classes for students. But unlike ESFL, most of those schools were either private or foreign, and the classes were optional.

Source: QUARTZ, click for full story