Universiade champions relay sports passion to Asian Games in east China's Deqing

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DEQING, China, Sept. 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- "I've been looking forward to visiting Mogan Mountain, which was named by The New York Times as one of the 45 best places to visit in the world," said Wen Jiayi, gold medalist of women's eight-person rowing in the 31st Summer Universiade held in southwest China's Chengdu. 

"Seeing is believing," Wen said.

Ahead of the opening of the Asian Games in Hangzhou, capital city of east China's Zhejiang Province, Wen and other athletes who just pocketed medals in the 31st Summer Universiade visited Zhejiang's Deqing City, according to the Information Office of Deqing County. 

Their team leader is Xu Yaping, the world champion of canoeing and associate professor of Zhejiang University, and they came here to share the joy and experience of participating in sports and lend steam to the preparation work of the beautiful city which will host the 3X3 basketball competition of the Asian Games.   

In addition to the athletes, a group of senior international sports media reporters and editors who are about to report on the Asian Games also joined the visit. These experienced media professionals toured the emerging sports city with a high-standard perspective.

In line with the demand for volunteer services in the Asian Games host cities, Deqing has completed the construction of a convenient community that can offer on-demand volunteer services in 15 minutes. A total of 22 volunteer service stations have been set up in key areas such as major competition venues, transportation hubs and scenic spots to offer timely services like emergency rescue and traffic guidance. 

"In the countdown to the opening of the Asian Games, we invited the Universiade athletes and Chinese and foreign media professionals to visit Deqing. Their international competition experience is expected to help us find out the weak links in the service work for the Asian Games," according to an local official in charge of the event operation.

The 3X3 basketball match of the Asian Games will be held in the world's first fixed 3X3 basketball venue, which is located by the beautiful Fengqi Lake and on the other side of the Deqing Geographic Information Town, which will be a new landmark of the scenic city.

The venue floor adopts the SES rubber court floor system that meets the standards of international events, and 20 strong oriented speakers are installed in the stadium, with clear sound, uniform sound field, and consistent play of sound and image. A total of 82 sets of special LED energy-saving lighting for sports buildings are also equipped to meet the requirements of live broadcasting and improve audience experience.

Alan George Adams is a veteran sports reporter and editor who has covered eight Olympic and Winter Olympic events from the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. As a contributor to USA Today, The New York Times and other internationally renowned magazines, he will also serve as the official Asian Games news editor for the Hangzhou Asian Games.

"For what I saw, evidence from talking to the venue media manager showed that Deqing is well prepared. The venue press manager showed me where the mix zone is and where people could go. They have it all ready and it's going to be a very good venue and very exciting time around," Adams said.

After the Asian Games, the entire sports center will be built into an urban exhibition hall, an activity center for young people, a sports complex and some commercial facilities. The roof of the venue will become a public sports park and stand as one cultural heritage of the Asian Games.

"In the future, Deqing will continue to make efforts to build the venue into one of the first-class 3X3 basketball venues in the country and even the world," a local official said.

The city will host more international events, upgrade the sports industry, and promote the deep integration of the sports industry with Deqing's characteristic industries such as sci-tech innovation in the geographical information town and Mogan Mountain cultural tourism, the official added.

"At the foot of Mogan Mountain, I felt the humanistic charm of Deqing's culture. I was deeply impressed by Deqing's international style and vigorous development," Xu Yaping said.

SOURCE The Information Office of Deqing County