Torch bearers take part in the opening ceremony for the Second National Youth Games at Shanxi Sports Center Stadium in Taiyuan last Thursday. Despite being produced on a tight budget, the high-tech show was an enthralling spectacle. [Photo by Wang Zhuangfei/China Daily]

On Aug 10, the soccer competition of the Second National Youth Games was held at Xishan Aoshen Sports City in Taiyuan, Shanxi province.

Comprised of four 11-a-side and three five-a-side pitches, the modern complex, complete with red seats, green turf and colorful runways, is a symbol of rebirth in an area that had previously been little more than a disposal site for toxic chemicals and other harmful substances.

"Before, there was nothing here but an abandoned storehouse," said Wang Chunkai, a cleaner who has lived in the area formerly known as Shangyeyu village for decades.

Some 400 meters away from the pitches lie the remains of caves and houses that villagers had lived in. Before the new facility was built, there was a long and narrow gully mixed with soil and fly ash, an unpleasant legacy of the region's previous reliance on coal mining.

On sunny days, villagers would walk through clouds of dust, and on rainy days their clothes would be caked in mud.

In 2000, the entire village of Shangyeyu was relocated but the gully remained. Later, a power plant was built, burning three millions tons of coal and producing 6,000 tons of fly ash annually. It was eventually shut down in 2017.

"Years ago, during spring and fall, the strong winds up on the hills blew the fly ash into the village and into our homes," said Zhang Xiujuan, a former Shangyeyu resident. "Every time I came in from outside, I had ash all over my face and inside my mouth. I could not even wear any light-colored clothing."

But despite the gloomy outlook, a rainbow soon appeared on the Shangyeyu horizon－in 2017, the site was selected to host the soccer tournament at the Youth Games.

Through pollution control, ecological restoration and site construction, the fly ash storehouse was transformed into a sports park.

Now, 20-year-old Zhang works as a volunteer at the Youth Games. With the ash and mud of the past now a distant memory, today she can wear an all-white uniform to work without worries that it will be smudged or stained by pollution.

The construction of the soccer complex has also benefitted local villagers financially, with many obtaining employment as cleaners and maintenance workers.

The environmental improvement and guaranteed incomes are enticing many former villagers to return.

"In the past, many of us left due to the bad conditions," said local resident Zhao Jinfen. "But now our hometown is much cleaner and more beautiful than before. The ones who left must want to come back now. Everyone would love to see their hometown become a better place."

According to Wang Linrong, design department chief at Xishan Aoshen Corporation, the new venues are just the first steps in a bigger plan. It is hoped the region will one day become a sports town spanning many square kilometers.

Sitting on a seat in the stadium complex, 61-year-old villager Meng Yue watches the action avidly and remarks: "I never dreamed I would be able to watch a great soccer match here, a place I hated before."