Youth tournament to kick off in July

BEIJING - The Great Wall Cup of Beijing, an international youth soccer tournament organized by the Beijing Football Association (BFA), will be held from July 25-31 at the Beijing Olympic Sports Center Soccer Park.

The tournament is expected to be held annually and its aim is to be one of the biggest international sports events in Beijing - along with the China Open and the Italian Super Cup.

Liu Peng, China's sports minister, said: "The shortage of reserve talent is the key reason for the low level of the sport in China. We have already realized the problem and started to focus on youth development.