Xi to attend Universiade in Chengdu

Photo taken on July 23, 2023 shows a countdown clock for the Chengdu Universiade in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan province. [Photo/Xinhua]

President Xi Jinping will attend the opening ceremony of the 31st summer edition of the FISU World University Games in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, and host visiting heads of state and government from six countries from Thursday to Friday, with expectations running high for the success of the gala event.

The Chinese president will hold a welcoming banquet and bilateral events for foreign leaders attending the opening ceremony and visiting China, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying announced on Monday.

The foreign leaders are Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Cheikh Ghazouani, Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye, Guyanese President Irfaan Ali, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, and Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka.

Chengdu will become the third city on the Chinese mainland to host the biennial Summer Universiade, following Beijing in 2001 and Shenzhen in 2011.

Zhu Feng, dean of the School of International Studies at Nanjing University, said the Universiade will be a major opportunity to promote exchanges and understanding among young people from across the globe, an important factor for global peace and stability.

The Chengdu games, the first major sports event held by China since Beijing's optimization of COVID-19 policies in January, will give fresh impetus to global youth exchanges, he said.

He noted that the six foreign leaders attending the Chengdu event are from developing nations in different regions of the world, which will make this year's Universiade an important occasion for high-level dialogue and exchanges in the developing world.

Some athletes have already expressed high expectations for the games, which are expected to run from Friday to Aug 8.

Lida Nanou, a student of applied mathematics at National Technical University of Athens and an archer, views her upcoming trip to Chengdu as an exciting experience.

"We have expectations. We will do our best as a team. It's great that the Universiades are back. We are going to meet athletes from all around the world. I find this experience very valuable in our journey as athletes," she told Xinhua News Agency.