Scott No: 1232-38
Serial number: J6
Values in set: 7
Date of issue: September 12, 1975
Denomination: 83 fen
Designer: Ren Yu, Zou Jianjun
Size of stamps:
31*52mm for Value 1, 4, 7;
52*31mm for Value 2, 3, 5, 6
Perforation: 11.5
Sheet composition:
40(10*4) for Value 1, 4, 7;
40(4*10) for value 2, 3, 5, 6
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

J6 "The Third National Games of the People's Republic of China" commemorative stamps were issued on September 12, 1975. The set consists of 7 stamps, printed by photogravure, designed by Ren Yu and Zou Jianjun, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory. Perforation gauge 11.5. (1)(4)(7) measure 31 mm × 52 mm, 40 stamps per sheet; (2)(3)(5)(6) measure 52 mm × 31 mm, 40 stamps per sheet.

Theme of the Set

The Third National Games of the People's Republic of China were held in Beijing from September 12 to 28, 1975. It was a grand comprehensive sports gala of New China, with thirty-one delegations from across the country, including athletes of Taiwan provincial origin, participating together, and more than ten thousand athletes taking part. The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications issued this commemorative set on the opening day of the games. Centered on the purpose of "develop sports and strengthen the people's physique," it unfolds from multiple angles—study, competition style, mass sports, ethnic sports, and youth reserve forces—recording these National Games and displaying the appearance of New China's sports undertakings: facing workers and peasants, facing the masses, with multi-ethnic joint participation, and emphasizing the cultivation of sports reserve talents.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Develop Sports and Strengthen the People's Physique

With red as the main tone, the design highlights the inscription "Develop sports and strengthen the people's physique" at the center. Athletes of all ethnic groups, holding flowers and colored flags, march in formation; above is the diamond-shaped emblem of these National Games, which includes a red flag, a sports field, and the words "Beijing 1975," setting off the warm and grand atmosphere of the games' opening.

Study Seriously

Two athletes sit side by side, reading and studying together with focused expressions, embodying the orientation of athletes persisting in study and developing in an all-round way.

Friendship First, Competition Second

Several athletes gather together to exchange ball skills and learn from one another; the picture is gentle and friendly, conveying the competition style of sports competition emphasizing exchange, unity, and mutual assistance.

Sports Serve the Workers, Peasants, and Soldiers

The main subject is a track-and-field athlete running forward with all his strength, with the images of workers, peasants, and PLA soldiers superimposed in the background, implying that sports take root at the grassroots and serve the broad masses of workers, peasants, and soldiers.

Carry Out Mass Sports Activities

A woman athlete waves in signal, and the blurred background depicts various sports scenes such as gymnastics, swimming, long-distance running, and mountain climbing, expressing that sports have stepped out of the arena and widely entered the lives of ordinary people, with mass sports rising vigorously.

Ethnic Sports Develop Vigorously

Ethnic minority athletes in various ethnic costumes gather joyfully, with traditional ethnic sports in the background, displaying that all ethnic groups participate in sports activities with one heart and that ethnic sports bloom in a hundred flowers.

New Forces Grow Healthily

A young athlete holds high a torch, surrounded by young players in football, gymnastics, volleyball, and other events, implying that young sports talents are constantly emerging and that the sports cause has successors.

Artistic Design Features

The set is in the typical poster style of the 1970s, with intense, bright colors and full compositions. The emblem of these National Games is uniformly placed in the upper corner of each stamp, forming a visually coordinated set. The seven stamps do not focus on depicting a single competitive event but instead narrate in layers around the policy and social significance of sports. It is a set of unique style among the early commemorative stamps on the theme of the National Games of New China.