Chinese VP urges athletes to serve as ambassadors of cultural exchange

PARIS, July 25 (Xinhua) -- Han Zheng, Chinese vice president and President Xi Jinping's Special Representative to attend the opening ceremony of the 33rd Olympic Games in Paris, urged Chinese athletes on Thursday to serve as good ambassadors of cultural exchanges during the Games.

Han made the remarks during his visit to the Olympic Village where he met with representatives of the Chinese Olympic delegation.

"Entrusted by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, I pay you a special visit in the Olympic Village on the eve of the opening of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games," Han said.

General Secretary Xi Jinping and the CPC Central Committee attach great importance to sports and care a lot about all the athletes, coaches, and staff members of the Chinese Olympic delegation, Han noted. He also conveyed the cordial greetings and best wishes of Xi and the CPC Central Committee to the whole delegation.

Han said that he was delighted to see that the whole Chinese delegation are in high spirits and have high morale, and that he was confident about their performances in the Paris Olympic Games.

Noting that the Olympic Games is an international sports event of the highest standard, attracting the attention of the whole world and hundreds of millions of Chinese people, Han expressed the hope that every athlete can be well prepared, rise to the challenges and go all out to win glory for the country.

The Olympic Games is an important occasion to demonstrate the sportsmanship of the Chinese athletes, he said, stressing the hope that they will strictly abide by the rules and regulations and demonstrate the will to strive to be the first, the courage to surpass oneself and the determination to win, actively conveying the positive energy of sports, deepening mutual understanding and friendship with athletes from other countries, presenting a positive image of new-era China, and serving as ambassadors of cultural exchange.

Chinese athletes, coaches and staff members expressed their sincere gratitude to General Secretary Xi and the CPC Central Committee for their care, and to Han for his visit.

They pledged to honor their mission, meet the people's expectations, and contribute the strength and spirit of Chinese sports to the success of the Paris Olympics.

On Thursday afternoon, Han also visited the China House for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Hotel Salomon de Rothschild.