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Not only sports, but a city on show in Shenzhen
By Shen Ji (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-25 07:51
For Shenzhen, a booming city bordering Hong Kong, the 2011 Summer Universiade is not purely an international sports event. Its successful bid for the competition allows the city to demonstrate its dynamic economy, excellent urban facilities, sound business environment and superior living conditions to the world, organizers said. Compared with more well-known Chinese cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, many foreigners are not familiar with Shenzhen, a once-small fishing town turned cosmopolitan center in south China. Though young, it is remarkable as the first mainland city with per capita GDP surpassing $10,000. "It's a hard-won opportunity for Shenzhen to make a breakthrough in the overall development, to learn and catch up with the world's top-notch cities, to increase our global reputation and influence, and to improve the citizen's quality of life and enhance the city's unity and innovational capacity," said Mayor Xu Zongheng at the 1,000-day countdown ceremony for the 2011 Summer Universiade on November 16. The 26th Summer Universiade will be held in Shenzhen from August 12 to 23 in 2011, according to a decision made by the Executive Committee of the International University Sports Federation (FISU) in October. The mayor said the international sports event will have a comprehensive and significant impact on different segments of the city, including social security, public transportation, living conditions for residents, the environment, culture, food and medical equipment. "We will fulfill our commitment to make the 2011 Summer Universiade the most wonderful, most successful and most influential event in its history," the mayor vowed. The local government pledged to offer strong financial support and mobilize a range of social resources to ensure the events success shortly after the city won bidding for the games on January 16, 2007. Its efforts will include subsidies and payments to the organizing committee, investment in sports facilities and tax exemptions on selected revenues, according to Liang Daoxing, vice-mayor and director general of the Executive Office of the Organizing Committee for the Universiade. |
