BRICS Games builds sports, cultural links

The 2017 BRICS Games will help facilitate sports and cultural exchanges among countries of the influential bloc, according to an official with the State General Administration of Sport.

"The games, comprised of three events - basketball, volleyball and the traditional martial arts, or wushu - will be of great importance to promoting close sports and cultural ties between China and the other four members," said Yang Shande, deputy chief of the Competitive Sports Department of the General Administration of Sport of China.

Nearly 300 athletes from the BRICS countries will compete in the games, scheduled to open on Saturday in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.