Movie inspires girls' soccer team

For a group of young girls pursuing their soccer dreams in the Wumeng Mountains of Southwest China, watching a team overcome seemingly impossible odds on the big screen became an inspiring reminder that perseverance can turn dreams into reality.

Members of the all-girl soccer team from Yuanbao Tongxin Experimental School recently gathered in Dafang county, Guizhou province, to watch Kung Fu Soccer, the Stephen Chow-directed comedy that has become the highest-grossing film of this year's summer box-office season.

The screening struck a particular chord with the players, who saw reflections of their own journey in the film's story of determination, teamwork and resilience.

Established in 2017, their team has nurtured nearly 100 young players, with 21 reaching national-level athlete standards. Through years of hard work and support from people across society, the girls have progressed from a remote mountain village to national and even international competitions, earning the nicknames "Roses on the Green Pitch" and "Wind-Chasing Girls".

Inspired by Kung Fu Soccer, which tells the story of an underdog women's soccer team fighting its way to victory, many of the players said they identified with the characters' perseverance and never-give-up spirit. "When I grow up, I want to be as awesome as them," one player said after the screening.