What are the new highlights of the Hangzhou Asian Games?, (Hangzhou Asian Games) Visit West Lake Together for the Asian Games | Scale | Highlights

Hangzhou, September 20th (China News Agency) - Question: What are the new highlights of the Hangzhou Asian Games during our trip to West Lake?

Xinhua News Agency reporter Xing Chong

After eight years of preparation, the light of the Asian Games is about to illuminate the banks of Xizi Lake during the autumn equinox, which symbolizes harvest. As the 19th Asian Games in history, when the Olympic flame of the Asian Games is lit for the third time in China, the new highlights of the Hangzhou Asian Games will be highly valued both domestically and internationally.

The streets of Hangzhou are filled with Asian Games elements, and the picture shows people taking photos in front of the Asian Games emblem. Image/Visual China

A new record for the scale of the competition

As the largest comprehensive sports event in Asia, the Asian Games have been held for over 70 years since the first Asian Games were officially held in 1951. If we trace back to its predecessor, the Far East Games, the flame of the Asian Games has been passed down for a hundred years. The upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games are expected to reach a new high in terms of event scale, becoming the largest, most diverse, and most widely covered event in the history of the Asian Games.

In this Asian Games, over 12000 athletes from all 45 members of the Asian Olympic Council signed up, with many delegations sending the largest ever teams. Six delegations, including China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, India, and Hong Kong, signed up with over 600 athletes. In addition to technical officials, media reporters, and others, the total size of the Hangzhou Asian Games will reach more than 30000 people, setting a new record for the Asian Games. The number of participants has increased, the level of competition has intensified, and the competition has become more exciting.

Compared to the 32 sports events of the Paris Olympics, the Hangzhou Asian Games has as many as 40 events, divided into 61 sub categories and 481 sub events. There are Asian characteristic sports such as cabardi, dragon boat, and wicker, as well as non Olympic sports such as martial arts, chess, and bridge. Electronic sports, breakdancing, and others will also make their official debut in the Asian Games. The competition in Olympic events is also innovative. The level of table tennis, diving, and badminton at this Asian Games can be considered "Olympic level", and the Hangzhou Asian Games can be said to be full of highlights.

The night view of the Asian Games Esports Center is magnificent, resembling a "interstellar battleship" with a strong sense of science fiction. Image/Visual China

In addition to the host city of Hangzhou, this year's Asian Games has unprecedentedly set up five co hosting cities, including Ningbo, Wenzhou, Huzhou, Shaoxing, and Jinhua, presenting a diverse charm of the Yangtze River; There are a total of 56 competition venues, 31 independent training venues, as well as 1 Asian Games village and 5 Asian Games sub villages, and the complexity of event organization far exceeds previous years. Raja Randir Singh, Acting President of the Olympic Council of Asia, said that Hangzhou is already ready to host the Asian Games. "I believe we will see the greatest Asian Games in history," he said

The New Style of Sports in China

The Chinese sports delegation sent 886 athletes to participate in the Asian Games, with 630 people participating for the first time, accounting for over 70%. The Asian Games have always been regarded as the "high school entrance examination" before the Olympics. Asian Games newcomers welcome milestone moments in their sports careers at home and will also showcase the new face of Chinese sports to the world.

In the first round of the men's football group stage of the Hangzhou Asian Games held on the evening of the 19th, the Chinese team won 5-1 against the Indian team, achieving a good start to the Hangzhou Asian Games. Next, the Chinese Football Association Asian Games team will also face Myanmar and Bangladesh in the group stage. Photo by Wang Gang, journalist from China News Agency

The youngest skateboarder in the Chinese sports delegation is 13-year-old Cui Chenxi. Although she did not have a professional background before and had not been involved in skateboarding for a long time, she made great progress in her skills after being selected for the training team, becoming a leader in women's street style skateboarding. The 12 skateboarders from the Chinese skateboard team are all born in the 2000s, standing out from a wide selection of candidates. Like them, the new members of the Asian Games are confident and sunny, with great enthusiasm for sports, and their performance is worth looking forward to.

Young newcomers represent the youthful vitality of Chinese sports, while veteran athletes who compete in the Asian Games again demonstrate their unwavering pursuit of sportsmanship. Ma Long, a famous table tennis player from the previous Asian Games, was unable to compete. He just won the men's singles championship at the Asian Championships and then competed in the Hangzhou Asian Games. The Chinese sports delegation has 36 Olympic champions, and like Ma Long, Gong Lijiao, Wang Shun, and others will also participate in the Asian Games for the fourth time. Through hard work, they have proven that their love for sports has no age limit, extending their "golden period" of career and becoming a benchmark for future generations. Those who aspire to win the championship have attracted widespread attention.

From overcoming the impact of the epidemic and winning 38 gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics, equaling the best results in foreign Olympic competitions, to continuously surpassing and breaking through and winning 9 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze medals at the Beijing Winter Olympics, creating the best results in the history of participating in the Winter Olympics, Chinese sports are showcasing a more open, confident, and admirable image of China in each shining moment. When the Asian sports scene enters the "Hangzhou moment", there is reason to believe that the Chinese team, which has won the gold medal for ten consecutive Asian Games, will continue to shine and present a rich and three-dimensional new style of Chinese sports.

New cultural connotations of the Asian Games

The Asian Games is not only a sports event, but also a feast with profound cultural connotations. From the "Lake Mountain" medal originated from Liangzhu civilization, to the "Tide Surge" emblem, which symbolizes the courage to stand at the forefront, from the mascot coming from the "Jiangnan memory, most reminiscent of Hangzhou", to the slogan of the Asian Games integrated with the Internet logo "@", Hangzhou, which was once praised by Marco Polo as "the most beautiful and luxurious city in the world", is adding a beautiful and graceful charm of Jiangnan and an expression of the times of Chinese civilization to the Asian Games culture with unique strokes.

The mascots of the Hangzhou Asian Games, "Congcong", "Chenchen", and "Lianlian", participated in a lotus pod and lotus leaf charity sale by West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The picture shows the Asian Games mascot, "Lianlian", delivering pre packaged lotus pods and leaves to customers. Photo by Wang Qiongling, China News Agency

Promoting the unity of Asia is one of the original intentions behind the birth of the Asian Games. Through the haze of the COVID-19, the Asian people have a deeper understanding of destiny and common, and the Hangzhou Asian Games is also expected to consolidate unity. From the perspective of the outside world, the Asian Games slogan of "Heart to Heart Integration @ Future" is highly compatible with the Olympic motto of "Faster, Higher, Stronger - More Unity". Vice President of the International Olympic Committee, Huang Simian, believes that the Hangzhou Asian Games will promote unity, cooperation, peace, and friendship in Asia and even the world through sports.

Taking the name of the Asian Games again, China's interaction with the world also has new implications. 33 years ago, "Asian Heroes" was sung in Beijing, showing the world a China that is moving towards openness and diversity; Thirteen years ago, the the Pearl River set sail in eight directions, and China, a giant ship, was sailing towards the center of the world stage; From Beijing to Guangzhou to Hangzhou, the world will feel the calm confidence of China and the realistic prospect of Chinese path to modernization in the fresh and poetic atmosphere of Jiangnan.

The appointment to go to West Lake in the name of sports is about to start the Hangzhou Asian Games. The wind comes from West Lake, and through the window of the Asian Games, people will see a new grand event, a fresh and vibrant Hangzhou, and a new and vibrant China.

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