Greater Bay Area to host 15th National Games

The 15th National Games will take place in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao from Nov 9 to 21 next year, providing an opportunity for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to demonstrate strength and integrated development.

Zhang Xin, director of athletic competitions at the General Administration of Sport of China (GASC), announced at a conference in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong, on Thursday.

Guangzhou will host the opening ceremony while Shenzhen, which borders Hong Kong, will organize the closing ceremony, he said.

"The 15th National Games is China's largest, highest level, and most influential comprehensive sports event. It is also the first time that Hong Kong and Macao will host a national sports event with such profound influence and significance," said Zhang.

The National Games are conducive to serving the national strategy for the GBA, accelerating exchanges and integration among the three regions, promoting the integration of Hong Kong and Macao into the overall development of the country and allowing the two SARs to obtain a continuous source of development momentum from national development, he said.

They are also conducive to connecting the rules of the three regions to promote the efficient and convenient flow of personnel, materials, funds and information, as well as to exploring paths and accumulating experience for the GBA's integration process, he said.

"Meanwhile, they will help promote the integrated development of culture, sports, tourism and business in the GBA. They will expand the consumption of sports, leisure, and cultural tourism and invite residents from the mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao to cross the border to travel and consume in the three regions. This will help with industrial transformation and upgrade, injecting new momentum into high-quality development in the GBA," he said.

Relevant departments have promised to organize a simple, safe and exciting sports event, according to Zhang.

"More than 90 percent of the venues for the 15th National Games are existing ones, which is the lowest number of newly built venues in recent years among our national games, effectively reducing the cost of hosting them," he said.

"There are less than 20 months before the opening ceremony of the 15th National Games," he said.

GASC, relevant national departments, and Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao organized the founding ceremony of the 15th National Games Organizing Committee to promote the event's preparation work.

GASC will increase its guidance and support for the preparation work in the coming months, he added.

The three regions will also host the 12th National Games for Persons with Disabilities and the 9th National Special Olympic Games.