HANGZHOU – Chinese President Xi Jinping today hosted a banquet to welcome guests who are gathering in the scenic city of Hangzhou to attend the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games, reported Xinhua.
At a dining hall near the famed West Lake, Xi addressed the welcoming banquet in honour of guests including King Norodom Sihamoni of Cambodia, President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah of Kuwait, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda of Nepal, Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao of Timor-Leste, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo of the Republic of Korea, and Malaysian Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul.
Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, and his wife Peng Liyuan and himself, extended a warm welcome to the guests.
The Chinese president talked beyond the Games, highlighting the sports’ role in promoting peace, solidarity, and inclusiveness among countries and peoples.
The Asian Games embodies the Asian people’s shared desire for peace, unity, and inclusiveness. It has been a witness, participant, and contributor of the Asian miracle – the overall stability and rapid and sustained economic growth over the past decades, Xi said.
As members of a community with a shared future, Asian countries should pursue good neighbourliness and mutual benefit, and reject the Cold War mentality and bloc confrontation, making Asia an anchor of world peace, the Chinese president said.
With all 45 members of the Olympic Council of Asia sending over 12,000 athletes to the Games, the Hangzhou Asiad is already the Asiad with the most participants, most sports, and largest overall scale.
The Republic of Korea, Mongolia and Palestine have each sent the largest delegation in their history of the Asian Games.
On Saturday evening, the opening ceremony was staged in the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium, a lotus-shaped facility capable of seating over 80,000 people.
Including the main stadium, a total of 56 sporting venues will host 481 Asiad events.
At Saturday’s banquet, Xi said the cauldron for the Asian Games will light up again in China on the Autumn Equinox, a day symbolising harvest and reunion in Chinese culture.
He said China has earnestly fulfilled its commitments and made every effort for the preparation of the Games.
“China will deliver a great event that is distinctly Chinese, uniquely Asian, and spectacular,” Xi said.
The Chinese president also expressed his confidence in the event’s success when meeting with both the Acting President of the Olympic Council of Asia Raja Randhir Singh and the International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach before the opening ceremony.
“I believe we will have the greatest ever Asiad,” Singh has said during an interview.
This will be the third Asiad in China following the Beijing Games in 1990 and the Guangzhou Games in 2010. – September 23, 2023