Sports prowess accounts for only 5 percent of the points on Shanghai high school entrance exams, but the competition for high scores is so great that parents aren’t leaving anything to chance.

In increasing numbers, they are enrolling their children in expensive extracurricular sports classes, according to the operators of fitness centers.

Li Bei is one such parent. She spends 120 yuan (US$19) a week on swimming classes for her son. After six months, he is now seconds faster in the 200-meter event, she said. That could translate to two or three more points on the exam.